


The Appointed Time

by VariableMammal



Series: Zootopia: The Empowered [2]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Gen, Language, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-05
Updated: 2018-09-10
Packaged: 2019-05-18 09:23:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 38,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14850099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VariableMammal/pseuds/VariableMammal
Summary: In a Zootopia peppered with mammals that have superpowers, Nick Wilde finds himself again embroiled in a conflict threatening to bring chaos to mammals both empowered and non-empowered.Somewhere, someone is waiting for the perfect time to act. The perfect action to take. All to make their dreams come true.They just need to find that time.





	1. The First Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go again! Thanks everyone for your thoughts and comments on the original "Familiar Fire". Hopefully the sequel will be enjoyable too.
> 
> Reading "Familiar Fire" is hopefully not necessary to enjoying this story, but it will help. 
> 
> Either way, let's get this started!

    It was a typical night at the Wet Wolf Whistle. There were lots of predators here and there; they were laughing, drinking, and merrymaking. Despite it being known as a predator scene, the owner was a brown horse, and he calmly cleaned glasses from behind the counter.  
  
    A certain handsome young fox was present at a table, playing cards with some fellow canids, mostly wolves. Their jovial barks and laughs indicated a good time was being had by all. Their tails even occasionally wagged.  
  
    "Ha ha, what do you think about _that_ , Wilde!?" A wolf shouted, energetically slapping down a pawful of cards. "Three of a kind. _Aces_."  
  
    "Oooh," a few of the other canids wagged their tails, staring at Nick Wilde, the red fox in question.  
  
    "No way he's got anything better," a confident coyote leered. "Nick hasn't moved an inch. He's bluffing!"  
  
    "Gonna wipe that smug look off your face," the wolf grinned.  
  
    Nick's easy smile and lazy eyes remained constant.  
  
    "C'mon, show your paw!"  
  
    "You know, it was really gutsy of you to call my bluff, and I respect that in a wolf," Nick said, keeping his cards close.  
  
    "Ha HA!" The wolf bounced up. "Knew it! You lyin' scoundrel! Just like a classic fox!" Several of the guys laughed at this, and the wolf brought his arms forward to rake in the cash.  
  
    " _However_ ," Nick cleared his throat. "I wasn't lying  _that_ time." Nick displayed his cards. He had a full house, three twos and two fives.  
  
    "What!?" The wolf spat, then laughed. "Ooooh, you're good, Wilde, you're _real_ good. But your luck can't last forever!"  
  
    "Oh _damn_ , you got hustled!" The coyote laughed, with a short howl for good measure.  
  
    The horse behind the counter rolled his eyes and let out one of those famous equine puffs of air that flapped his lips, but ended up with a small grin.  
  
    "Careful there," Nick said, raking in the money. "Any more and I'm gonna be walking away with your shirt."  
  
    "It'd look better on you than what  _you're_ wearing!" Another wolf next to Nick ribbed him, chuckling.  
  
    The canids laughed again, some jerking their thumbs at Nick's very loud green Pawaiian shirt.  
  
    "Hey, it's short sleeve," Nick's eyebrows wiggled. "So I'm not hiding any cards up there." The guys laughed again and added a few howls, jostling Nick around. They did like to have a good time, and Nick found himself relaxing.  
  
    Nick simply rocked at all of the ribbing, smiling calmly, waiting for the next hand to be dealt.  
  
    "Dogs playing poker. How classic."  
  
    The voice was feminine, dry, and a touch sinister. Nick's ear twitched. Sounded like it belonged to someone in their late forties. He'd never heard a voice like that before in his life. His head twitched to start looking behind him.  
  
    "Gh..." Nick felt something very unusual, very quick, and very sharp. The world seemed to slow. Looking down, five dots of red were starting to grow in a cluster on his shirt, staining it and unavoidably growing to join each other.  
  
    "What the hell!?" The coyote launched up from his seat, eyes bulging. "That cat killed Nick!"  
  
    Nick started to slump in his chair, feeling an unfamiliar weakness. His paw went to cover what he supposed were wounds; his mind addled by the sudden attack. With a yowl, he saw a flash of yellow jump past him.  
  
    A jaguar.  
  
    "Get that bitch!" The wolf bared his fangs. "Show 'er what happens when you mess with a pack!"  
  
    Instantly the other canids, even the coyote, pounced at the jaguar and started to attack her. It was utter chaos. Other patrons were screaming and making for the door. The bar owner was rushing for a phone. Nick kept staring forward, his eyes starting to glass over.  
  
    This wasn't right. He couldn't die here.  
  
    Nothing seemed right. Somehow the jaguar was _winning_. Whimpers and cries filled the air as the wolves landed maybe one good bite on her each, and in non-lethal places like her shoulder or sides.  
  
     _That_ was it. There were flashes of bone coming from various areas on the jaguar. So fast they sent little shines in the air. Needles, almost. They came from her claws, her elbows, her knees, her fangs. Even surrounded by wolves and a coyote, the whirlwind of violence was quickly scattering the canids.  
  
    "Come on then, you curs!" The jaguar laughed, throwing the weakened and bleeding wolves away from her. Another stab forward with ten claws that lunged like missiles before going back to their places. Unnatural, perverse. The coyote fell.  
  
    Were they all dead?  
  
    Nick couldn't die here. He couldn't. He... actually _couldn't_.  
  
    Nick took a quick look down his shirt and saw the wounds he'd been dealt start to vanish. The holes in his body mended, and a familiar feeling of swelling strength rose in the fox. His body defied injury; defied death.  
  
    He had to leave. Wrapping another paw around his chest to hide the triviality of his injuries, he stood slowly to try not to attract attention.  
  
    "Call 911!" Someone cried.  
    "No, call 235! That jaguar is Empowered!"  
  
    But of his drinking and card buddies, no one was left to oppose the jaguar. The fox caught her eyes.  
  
    "Still standing, huh?" The jaguar stepped forward, grinning. Nick stumbled backward and almost lost his footing. As he crouched, he felt a welcome tension in his legs, that quickly spread through his whole body. The jaguar sighed and shook her head. "That's the problem with such violence. It takes more and more to get you that thrill you once felt at first. So... I'll thank you for resisting death, for just a moment longer. Goodbye, mutt."  
  
    It happened very fast. Faster than anyone could see, even Nick. He barely knew it was happening.  
  
    He just thought it, and it happened.  
  
    The jaguar flew clear to the other end of the bar and smashed against the wall. Her body limply fell to the ground as her head rolled unnaturally loosely on her neck.  
  
    Nick realized his fist was still extended, and he quickly put it into his pocket. His heart-rate started to accelerate to dangerous levels and he checked his left and right nervously.  
  
    She was dead.  
  
    "Nick...!?" The owner seemed to have frozen, holding the phone loosely between his hoof-fingers as he gaped at Nick. "Yh-you killed her? You're... Empowered!?"  
  
    It was time to go. He still had some of that tension left in his legs.  
  
    The door didn't offer much resistance as Nick's burst of speed made it explode from its hinges and find a new home in another building's wall. The door's glass shattered. Nick gaped at it for a full second while wiping off the glass from his face and arms, then another speed burst sent him off into the night, where no one could catch him.  
  
    Maybe Nick could find a way to make things right again. Somehow.  
  
    For now, though, he was on the run.  
  


* * *

  
    They were called the Empowered. About 112 years in the past, "something" had happened to the earth. Due to the lack of technology available to mammalkind at the time, science was hazy on what exactly happened during that time, but the planet had fallen victim to a number of bizarre celestial events. Eyewitness reports numbered in the hundreds of thousands.  
  
    There were meteors that had landed. Strange lights were seen in the sky of various colors. The meteorites had been heavily researched for their content, and modern science labs tried to reproduce the bursts of light. Were they some sort of radiation from space, or something else? The tests were inconclusive, but what couldn't be ignored was what had happened.  
  
    Mammals were being born with fantastic powers.  
  
    They ranged from everything one could think of. Control over fire, water, or other natural forces. Control over thought or matter. Incredible speed or durability.  
  
    For some reason, Zootopia seemed to be at the center of all of this. Most of the celestial objects landed near or around Zootopia, and they had the highest density of Empowered mammals, compared to "normal" ones.  
  
    Not only that, powers weren't even distributed equally among all species. Red foxes in particular had a very high rate of being born Empowered, but not a single platypus had ever been recorded as having powers. None that had come forward, anyway.  
  
    Early on, many of the Empowered were lawless, using their advantages to obtain what they wanted. Justice-loving Empowered rose up to fight them, but their chaotic nature and lack of cohesion often led to fights that led Zootopia further into disorder.  
  
    That was, until the ZED was formed. The Zootopia Empowered Division. Decades after the celestial incidents occurred, the organization had finally formed and began to support and protect mammals of all kinds. Recruiting from any end of the spectrum, from the merely capable to the truly super-heroic, the ZED was backed by the government and was undeniably an instrumental force in bringing down super-powered crime.  
  
    But any system had its flaws, and Nick was keenly aware of one of them.  
  
    For just over ten years, he'd been hunted by them. They'd gotten word of "that" night, and witnesses saw him commit another murder a year down the road.  
  
    Nick knew he couldn't reason with them, not after what he'd been through with them. He'd played with the idea of getting involved with them in the past, but when he noticed one of the chief Enforcers of the ZED was going off the rails and the fox blew the whistle, they ignored it. Then, everything came crashing in on itself at the ZED, and it took them several years to get free of the wreckage.  
  
    Then, that night happened. The night with the cat. Serena Prowlmore, that was her name. Nick had looked it up. He felt some sort of grim responsibility for the life he'd taken. ...Okay, it was two lives now. Rocky Holideer. That was the other one.  
  
    But he had good reasons for what he'd done. Or so he kept telling himself.  
  


* * *

  
    A lot of things had happened, but Nick still knew to look over his shoulder every night when he walked down the street. He even got into the habit of flexing his knees every few steps, just to keep a little bit of that tension in his legs. He never knew when he'd need to make an escape.  
  
    Sometimes, though, for some fool reason, he'd end up using that speed to dash _into_ danger.  
  
    It seemed like tonight was going to be one of those nights. He saw unusual orange glows coming from around a corner in the buildings of Savanna Central, as well as screaming, and something like a faint laughter.  
  
    Nick took a few steps forward, then a few more. When he broke into a full run, he stopped himself by crouching, then dashed forward. Instantly, he was where he expected to be, at another block. More tension in his legs to use. Another dash, and another. He'd rounded three corners in the time it took for a mouse to blink three times.  
  
    "Aw jeez, what the heck...?" Nick grew a scornful scowl.  
  
    There was a wolverine suspending himself in the air on jets of fire gushing from his palms. He cackled and rose higher, then dove forward and landed on the ground, spraying fire anywhere it would stick. More cars and buildings started to catch flame.  
  
    "What are you doing!?" Nick shouted forward. "Mammals paid good money for this stuff!"  
  
    The wolverine glared at him from across the street as if he was offended. "Imbecile. I am rebirthing the world in fire! It is my birthright! Can you not see with those fox eyes!? I am the chosen one of FERVOR!"  
  
    "Oh God..." Nick rolled his eyes, then abruptly wiggled his hand. "Er, not _you_ , Fervor. ...Now which god is it you're supposed to invoke disdainfully?"  
  
    "Fool! Perish for your insolence!" The wolverine brought his hands together, then threw a large ball of fire at Nick.  
  
    In a blink, Nick was halfway across the street, still seemingly in the same contemplative position as before.  
  
    "Is it Karma? That'd probably get me in trouble," Nick tapped on his chin. "How about Paradigm?"  
  
    "Oh, so you're blessed too, are you?" The wolverine sneered. "But you lack the form of a deity! You will not stop me!"  
  
    Nick looked at him coolly. "Listen, kid. What can you do, shoot fire from your hands? That's amateur stuff. I've seen  _much_ more impressive things, believe me.  _Done_ much more impressive things. Now you might wanna stop this nonsense before you hurt yourself." He made a conciliatory gesture. "And if not, I might be forced to hurt _you_."  
  
    "Insolent cur!" The wolverine threw another fireball, and missed by a mile as Nick dashed twice as far in the other direction. "Wretched whelp!" Another swing and a miss.  
  
    "Tsk tsk tsk, with the _insults_..." Nick shook his head, his hands in his pockets. "Y'know, sometimes having powers gets to your head. And sometimes the head just can't take it, it seems."  
  
    "You DARE mock me!?" The wolverines voice cracked under his shriek. "I'll-!"  
  
    He couldn't finish his sentence. A white blast of  _something_ whipped past the wolverine, and he started spinning around like a top.  
  
    "What the-!? Wha- rgh!" The wolverine staggered against a nearby wall, off-balance.  
  
    What the, indeed. Nick looked around, confused.  
  
    "Waaaagh!"  
  
    Another flash of white! Suddenly the wolverine was no longer in view. Nick looked up. Oh, okay.  
  
    It was a member of the ZED, some sort of off-white colored fox. She was holding the wolverine upside-down by the ankle, floating in midair. Unmistakably part of the ZED, she wore their familiar black uniform with blue highlights. Nick was having thoughts about being somewhere else.  
  
    "Aaaaaaaaagh! Let me go!" The wolverine wailed.  
  
    " _Don't_ think you want me to do that," the vixen chided playfully. "But, guess I can oblige. Can you fly?"  
  
    "No, no, wait! WAIT!" The wolverine screamed, flailing his arms.  
  
    The vixen flew up higher and tossed the wolverine.  
  
    "AAAAAGH!"  
  
    It was only a short way. She tossed him onto the ceiling of a building. In a cyan flash, Nick saw what looked like a pig with a futuristic visor catch the wolverine, who was understandably baffled by this series of events. The pig also seemed to be in a ZED uniform.  
  
    "Gerardo, you know what to do!" The fox winked at him, pointing.  
  
    "Got it, Skye," Gerardo nodded, looking down at the wolverine. "You're comin' with me, amigo."  
  
    "WHAT'S GOING ON-!?"  
  
    Another cyan flash, and the pig and the wolverine were gone.  
  
    "Uh, okay then," Nick chuckled. Skye slowly floated down and put her hands on her hips, smirking at Nick. "You know, I could have done that."  
  
    "Uh huh," Skye smirked, then looked at him. "Wait... are you...?"  
  
    "Whatever you're thinking, just hold onto that thought for a second, okay?" Nick pointed at her, smiling. Then, he vanished in a burst of speed.  
  
    Nick felt a zip and a burst of air right next to him, and Skye was there.  
  
    "You are!" She sounded elated.  
  
    "Gah!" Nick flinched exaggeratedly.  
  
    He took off again, but Skye's pursuit was dogged. Eventually, Nick felt the tension in his legs give out, and he had to return to normal speed to gather more energy for his dashing. At that point, Skye also returned to normal speed, but took to the air and floated after Nick, lifting him up by his shirt collar with both paws.  
  
    "Hey, what the!?" Nick wiggled his legs, instantly embarrassed that he'd been disabled by such a lame move.  
  
    "Grgh, you're heavy," Skye grunted. "Hey, no running away when I'm trying to thank you, okay?"  
  
    "The heck are you talking about...?" Nick asked, then transitioned into a yelp when Skye dropped him about a foot to the ground.  
  
    "Super _strength_ would be nice," Skye grumbled. "But hey, don't run! It's me, Sunny Skye!"  
  
    Nick picked himself up off the ground and dusted himself off. "Well, you've got the smiley disposition, and the flying powers, so I can see where that moniker comes from. I thought Commander Bogo didn't like superhero names, though."  
  
    Skye laughed pleasantly, kicking back in the air. "That  _is_ my name. My parents were kind of the 'free-spirit' type."  
  
    "Ah, then you must be... 'that' vixen," Nick looked at her blankly. "The one I donated my blood to."  
  
    "Yup," Skye nodded, floating closer to him with an earnest, enthusiastic expression. "And thank you _so much_ for that. You don't know how much suffering I was in, or for how long..."  
  
    "So does that mean I get a ticket to avoid this fight?" Nick pointed both fingers in another direction. "Because I'm pretty tired tonight, and I- hey, where's Enforcer Hopps, anyway? You usually send  _her_ to fight me."  
  
    "No one's fighting you tonight," Skye folded her arms, landing on the ground. "Hopps isn't here because I could get here faster. It made more sense to send me."  
  
    "Right, because you took my powers when you took my blood," Nick scowled at her.  
  
    "Hey, I didn't ask for it, okay?" Skye held up her arms wide. "It's just what ended up happening. If I could have just  _borrowed_ your self-healing powers, just for a minute, that would have made all the difference in the world to me, but this is what happened, okay? I might as well make use of what I have."  
  
    "Right, I get it," Nick shook his head. "So, because I saved you and made you even more powerful than you already were... I guess the ZED's going to look the other way for me? Once or twice?"  
  
    "Mr. Wilde, or 'Hustler', or whatever you wanna go by," Skye planted her paws on her hips. She then leaned forward and glared up at him. "Watch the news tonight. You may see something you like."  
  
    An white blur, and she was gone, leaving Nick speechless and blinking.  
  
    Moments later, another vixen flew by, this one the traditional red fox colors. She was using a rod and a blast of flame like a rocket, or at least a "witch's broom". She landed near the flames, which Nick was absentmindedly walking past. The vixen was rather young, early twenties at most, and was wearing a ZED uniform, but of a different color. The edges were reddish.  
  
    "Oh, hey Nick," the vixen said. "Looks like that wolverine left me a mess to clean up."  
  
    "Ah, it's the little sorceress," Nick smiled.  
  
    The vixen disembarked from her "broom" and held the rod up. All the flames in the area slowly swirled together into one place, several feet above the metal rod, and then the small vixen sighed, causing the flames to completely disperse. They were replaced by a cool burst of air.  
  
    "You're getting really good at that, Brittany," Nick grinned.  
  
    "Stuff seems to catch on fire a lot," Brittany responded with a small chirp. "Wish it didn't, but hey, I have a purpose because of that."  
  
    "You really like the ZED telling you what to do and all, huh?" Nick seemed to be looking past her, folding his arms.  
  
    "Hey, it's almost like my family, okay?" Brittany frowned, her brow falling. "We're a team, and we look out for each other. Speaking of, I kinda owe you for helping Skye. So... thanks again for that."  
  
    "Don't mention it," Nick huffed. "Hey, you know what's supposed to be on the news tonight? Skye said to watch it."  
  
    To his surprise, Brittany giggled. "Well, if Skye says to watch it, then watch it, dummy."  
  
    Brittany mounted her "broom" again and blasted away, leaving Nick alone.  
  
    Nick shook his head. He couldn't remember the last time he'd gotten mixed up with the ZED and  _not_ had to fight for his life. Of course, it would be very hard for them to actually  _kill_ him. Still, to say it was unpleasant was an understatement. Ten years, he'd put up with that.  
  
    Oh well, time for him to go home. Or at least, the closest thing to that he could name.  
  
    Nick took a few steps forward, crouched, and then was gone in a burst of copper and the green of his "superhero" outfit.


	2. Stolen Time

    Nick slowed his super-speed gait when he got to familiar territory in the Rainforest District. Giving a cursory look left and right to check for any onlookers, he made for a tall house built into a tree. Patting down his suit, he retrieved a set of keys and entered the home. It was quaint and simple, but it looked comfortable, clean, and livable.  
  
    "Honey, I'm home!" Nick said, holding his arms out wide, and mentally hearing a laugh track in his head. He provided a small collection of audible laughs before groaning and looking around. "You there? You're never asleep by this time."  
  
    Nick looked around and sighed, rolling his eyes. He tapped his foot in a particular and very complicated pattern on the throw rug.  
  
    "Honey?"  
  
    There was no response. Nick twisted his muzzle this way and that. Lack of response was unusual, but not unheard of. He tossed the throw rug to the side and started to run a lap in the room. He crouched, then quickly knelt and punched his hand into the floor. The wood gave way with a splintery burst, leading to a fairly narrow hatch.  
  
    "Ow..." Nick wrung his hand, which had almost broken from the impact. Seconds later, his mending ability dulled and removed the pain, but it lingered like a memory for a few moments.  
  
    The fox jumped into the newly-created hole, not bothering to use the provided metal handholds.  
  
    "Honey, are you-?"  
  
    Nick yelped as he stared downward into the barrel of a pistol. Holding it was an angry-looking badger. The fox's body completely tensed up, and he held his paws up in surrender.  
  
    "Honey! HI!" Nick blurted, showing his teeth in a nervous smile. "How's it going? I'll pay you for the door repair-!"  
  
    The badger drew back the hammer on the gun, causing a distinct click.  
  
    "Honey, please, c'mon!" Nick mumbled. "Don't shoot me. Not _again_.... not in the left shoulder... for the sixth time...!"  
  
    The badger released a long, drawn out groan, and put the safety back on on her handgun.   
  
    "It would have been the  _seventh_ time, but you're close enough," Honey reported, placing the gun back on a desk. "You fainted the first time."  
  
    Nick let out a low moan. "You know, you wonder why I don't visit more often."  
  
    "Don't be such a baby, Nicky!" Honey jumped into a well-worn burgundy computer chair, adjusting her tank top and camo jeans in a very casual fashion. "You'd just heal up."  
  
    "That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt like hell when you shoot me," Nick scolded in a stern voice. "And it hurts even more when I have to dig into my own shoulder to get rid of the slug."  
  
    Honey swung around in her chair, shook her head, and gave a one-armed shrug. "Nicky babe, you  _never know_ when you might be a shape-shifter, okay? Just trying to protect myself."  
  
    "That was _one time_ ," Nick wailed.   
  
    "Yeah, and letting your guard down  _once_ is how they get ya," Honey wagged her finger. "You're just lucky you told me roughly how many times I shot you. The other guy? Couldn't even pronounce your middle name right. That, and he tried to seduce me." The badger looked contemplative for a second. "You know, you'd probably do real good at seducin' someone, Nicky babe."  
  
    "All right, whatever," Nick launched himself onto a couch that was basically falling apart. He scanned his eyes around the place. There was anti-sheep propaganda littering the walls. A truly ridiculous amount of wires made it look like the badger's hideout was formed by the entrails of some kind of cyborg tree. Monitors were almost everywhere one could look. Cabinets full of drawers and folders with printed information were half-opened and their contents strewn about.   
  
    To say it was a pig sty would have been an insult to pigs.  
  
    "You heard anything tonight, Honey?" Nick asked.  
  
    "Ooh, glad you asked," Honey pointed at Nick with her index claws, then swiveled back to her main computer station, which had no less than six monitors arranged more or less neatly. "So, I was talkin' with my sister today-"  
  
    "And by that, you mean..." Nick interrupted, rotating his paw at the wrist, "you hacked into her computer?"  
  
    "Eh!" Honey chuckled, shrugging. "You say hack, I say she has an easy-to-guess password. Anyway, you won't  _believe_ what kind of students just signed up for the ZED."  
  
    "I bet I will," Nick droned, staring at the ceiling. He'd lost count of how many times that panel he busted through had to be repaired.  
  
    "Two sheep!" Honey stared at him sternly, holding up a couple of claws. "Two! Doesn't that seem suspect?"  
  
    "Didn't you find out that the ZED has something like half a dozen red foxes?" Nick barely looked at her.  
  
    "Seven, but who's countin'?" Honey laughed.  
  
    "You, apparently," the fox quipped.  
  
    "You red foxes are lousy with powers, though, I bet somethin's going on," Honey looked back to the data on her computer. "The timing is _just_ right."  
  
    Nick gave a loud groan. It was going to be one of  _these_ nights. He launched up from the couch and went over to Honey's setup to humor her.  
  
    "What do you mean by 'the timing'?"  
  
    "Well, you know, the tabloids ten years ago?" Honey pointed at a scrap of aged newspaper pinned to a cork board. "Sayin' mammals kept seein' a coupla  _sheep_ headin' to the meteor site to the southwest?"  
  
    "Right, so that ties into your theory about how sheep are actually aliens," Nick said unenthusiastically, his arms at his sides.  
  
    "No, no, that was just a baby theory, Nick," Honey rolled her eyes, as if in pity. "What I'm sayin' is... who can get even  _close_ to those sites without bein' pumped fulla lead?"  
  
    "Top government officials, I'd think?" Nick shrugged. "The ZED themselves?"  
  
    "Zactly," Honey gave him a confident glance. "And there were no ZED sheep back then. Makes me think the sheep were  _tryin'_ something. Like, how they could get their hooves on some _powers_."  
  
    "It doesn't work like that, Honey," Nick fought the ever-present urge to roll his eyes. "You can't really 'get' powers, you have to be born with them." Of course, he wasn't going to mention the whole "red fox blood power transferal" thing that seemed to  _be_ "a thing". He was sure Honey would  _somehow_ twist that into being about sheep. He'd seen her do more with less.  
  
    "Not sayin' it was  _those_ sheep," Honey said, narrowing her eyes, "but their _kids_. Don't you think? Proximity to the meteor... maybe it messes with your code a bit? The two sheep that signed up were pretty young."  
  
    "Next thing I know you're gonna track their genealogy," Nick sighed. "Listen, there've been no sheep 'supervillains.' Ever. I dunno what it is about them that makes you so..." Nick looked at all of Honey's feverish research. "...Particular."  
  
    "It's their eyes, mostly," Honey frowned, looking a touch frightened. "So... narrow." She shivered, vocalizing the shiver. "And what about the research that'd been done into their _origins_ , huh? That they supposedly came to sapience hundreds of years before the next species did? What do you think they were doin' _then_ , huh?"  
  
    "...Being sapient?" Nick hazarded.  
  
    "They know somethin' we don't... somethin' about SOMETHIN'," Honey raved, her voice raising in volume. "You mark my words! I dunno if it's about the meteors, about space in general, or just... like, the fabric of reality. But  _sheep_ are the main players."  
  
    "Right," Nick sighed, shaking his head. "I meant more like, had you heard anything particular on the news?"  
  
    "Pfffff!" Honey laughed, placing her hands on her belly. "You think I watch that mainstream junk, Nicky? The news is controlled by the media, which in turn is a business tryin' ta make money. They only show what'll get them the viewership! Nothin' I'M interested in- hey, HEY! What're you doin'!?"  
  
    Nick bent over, adjusting one of Honey's many monitors to The Zootopia News Network. "Putting on the eleven o'clock news. I got a tip that I should watch it."  
  
    "From a sheep?" Honey narrowed an eye.  
  
    Nick ignored her. The night anchors of the ZNN were a lively bunch consisting of a rather pretty female fruit bat and an enthusiastic male vole. There were a few random reports on crime, including the incident with the wolverine. Nick stood there and watched, already mildly bored.  
  
    "Speaking of the Empowered, earlier today, the ZED put out a rare public statement," the vole reported. "It was very particular, focused on a single mammal."  
  
    "One 'Nick Wilde'," the fruit bat nodded. "In the statement, they absolve him of his alleged wrongdoing. Take a listen."  
  
    Nick stood there in ramrod disbelief, as if Honey  _had_ actually shot him.  
  
    "The hey?" Honey awkwardly scooted up her chair to be closer to the monitor Nick was captivated by.  
  
    Commander Bogo, an imposing cape buffalo, showed up on screen at a podium. Nick couldn't quite place where he was. The conference room was unfamiliar. "And so, we'd like to publicly apologize for our continuing campaign against Nick Wilde, also known as... the 'Hustler'."  
  
    "Huh," Nick huffed audibly, mostly in disbelief, but also because he knew Bogo  _hated_ aliases.  
  
    "Going over evidence from the ZPD, old testimony from eyewitnesses, and other situations have led us to conclude that the two murders that Mr. Wilde was suspected of were, in fact, done in self-defense, and we will not be seeking further prosecution of the fox at this time," Bogo continued. It seemed so clinical, even with the imposing nature of the large mammal's voice.  
  
    "They're...  _not_ going to hunt me anymore...?" Nick didn't seem convinced.  
  
    The media started to explode into questions.  
  
    "Why have you chosen now to absolve Mr. Wilde? Does it have to do with his species!?"  
    "How many other crimes might the ZED have been wrong about?"  
    "Will you seek closer collaboration with the ZPD from now on?"  
  
    "No questions will be taken at this time," Bogo said calmly. "Good day." He left the podium. The scene shifted back to the newsroom.  
  
    "In another statement, Commander Yumba Bogo of the ZED said," the fruit bat started, and the words appeared onscreen. "We deeply regret the egregious inconvenience we have imposed on Mr. Wilde's life. We know we cannot make up for the time and difficulties we have caused him, we only hope that, moving forward, we can avoid such errors."  
  
    "Wow," Nick shook his head, his voice deadpan. "What the hell."  
  
    "Isn't that... _good_ , Nicky?" Honey blinked. "You're kinda a free mammal now!"  
  
    "Yeah, Mom's going to love that," Nick shrugged, still inflicted with a haze of disbelief. "The problem is, what Bogo said... it's not really true."  
  
    "What? How do you mean?" Honey cocked her head.  
  
    "I may have killed Prowlmore in self-defense, but not Holideer," Nick scowled. "I meant to do that, remember?"  
  
    "Yeah, that's what you said..." Honey recalled. "...You think..."  
  
    "They want something, from me, probably," Nick scowled. "And bless your little paranoid heart for getting me to think that way. Could save me down the road."  
  
    "It's fishy," Honey agreed, nodding. "Mighty fishy. Speakin' of, you want some food? I got-"  
  
    "Pass," Nick shrugged. "I... have some thinking to do."  
  
    Nick started to climb up the hand-holds up to the main level of the house.  
  
    "Stay vigilant, Nicky," Honey warned, opening a fridge, whereupon the smell of leftover fish assailed Nick from clear across the room. "The sheep may have gotten to 'em."  
  
    "I'm sure it's something like that," the fox replied absently as he slowly made his way out of sight, his tail leaving last of all.  
  
    "Damn sheep," Honey muttered in distaste.   
  


* * *

  
    Nick's "space" still carried that melancholy beauty he craved from the city. It was on the outskirts of Zootopia, near the northwestern-most part of the Meadowlands, nearing the northern tip of Zootopia itself. The fox's pace slowed as he entered the abandoned construction site, the half-finished building giving way to a good view of the fiery evening sky. He came to rest against a sturdy pillar, sighing and folding his arms.   
  
    Just a mile or two further north, Nick knew one of the meteor sites lay. He also knew that it was crawling with guards of all types. He once made a cursory glance at it, which showed defensive systems rivaling the ZED, with animal guards of all sizes to match.  
  
    The fox huffed. What a boring job. Important or not, you couldn't pay Nick enough to guard a _rock_ for a good portion of each day.  
  
    A job, huh? Now that Nick wasn't wanted by the ZED, that could be a thing he could entertain. It'd be so "normal", though. Nick's powers were incredibly useful, but definitely not for fine motions and most everyday tasks. Moving around at super-speed tended to catch lots of things on fire, and an impact at super-speed would break most things.  
  
    But could he really live as a "normal fox" now?  
  
    "Tch," Nick sucked his teeth. He dreaded the encounter with his mother he knew would eventually have to come. She tended to be very emotional, and ostracized him from her life once she found out he was a criminal.  
  
    That, and there was the fact that he'd kept his abilities secret from his mother ever since he'd discovered them by accident when he was nine.   
  
    What a dope he was. After learning he could run at super speed he promptly broke his leg in his mother's backyard. Clipped a tree with it. He thought the jig was up immediately, but his leg healed itself. Young Nick had been full of that tremendous glee unique to being the holder of a powerful, amazing secret.  
  
    "And, here we are now," Nick sighed. Reality set in hard, even for someone as powerful as him. Of course, his mother learned the truth when the media started to report he was wanted for murder, and it just made things even worse than they would have been.  
  
    Nick's muscles tensed as he heard a familiar clacking sound off in the distance. He knew that sound _very_ well.  
  
    Tchack. Tchack.  
  
    The sound of the atmosphere bursting. It was getting closer; Nick groaned in mild disdain.  
  
    "Nick? Nick! You here?" A female voice.   
  
    A small, gray bunny rounded the corner, finding Nick still leaning against the pillar.  
  
    "Nick!" She was wearing the traditional uniform of the ZED Enforcer unit. It would have looked silly on such a cute gray and white bunny, but Nick knew better than to think that.  _This_ bunny was a force to be reckoned with. It was Judy Hopps, one of the primary Enforcers on the ZED.  
  
    "Buster Bunny," Nick said evenly. He hadn't even bothered to put his cordial mask he usually used when talking to the rabbit.  
  
    "Hi!" Judy waved, a bright smile on her face. She took a few adventurous steps closer. "So! You uh- you see the news?"  
  
    "Tch, I knew I should have found a better 'alone place'," Nick looked up at the sky. The fiery oranges were yielding to deeper, softer purples as the light faded. "Brittany must have told you about here, yeah?"  
  
    "Nah, I asked Commander Bogo to look for you," Judy's enthusiasm waned, but only by a fraction. She was irrepressible.  
  
    Nick's eyes narrowed. "Huh, is that so? I thought I was out of range of his scanning ability."  
  
    "He tried extra hard, for me," Judy shrugged. "Also, we went patrolling, y'know, this thing called 'moving around'. It altered his view of the city, and we could find you that way."  
  
    "So you always could have found me," Nick grumbled, folding his arms. "You just contrived some reason that Bogo always needed to stay put."  
  
    "Well, uh, he _is_ the Commander, and his power is very invaluable," Judy held up a finger weakly. She shrugged. "I- I uh... I thought you'd be happier? About being let off the hook?"  
  
    Nick closed his eyes and shook his head. "I think you guys only did it because you wanted something from me. That, or you feel safe from me now because of that whitish fox."  
  
    Judy scoffed loudly, walking over to be closer to him with her arms extended wide. "Is that how you think? Couldn't we have just done this out of the goodness of our hearts? Or because it was the  _right_ thing to do?"  
  
    Nick gave a grin that Judy could see was seasoned with malice. "You really are an idiot, Judy."  
  
    Judy flinched at the use of her name. She'd never known Nick to call her anything but pseudonyms he'd imagined up.  
  
    "You think for  _one moment_ that you can just..." Nick splayed his arms out, "' _forgive_ ' me, and that's that? We're friends?" He flipped a finger up. "Just flick the switch, and we're friends now." He flicked some more. "Enemies, friends. Is that how  _simple_ the world is to you?"  
  
    "Nick..." Judy looked crestfallen. "If I had my way, we would have never been after you for so long. I know you're not a bad mammal."  
  
    "Again, the words of an idiot," Nick scoffed, looking away. "I am, in fact, a bad mammal. Obviously, your judgement is flawed. That said, either way, you have to abide by the rules of your little club, so it doesn't matter what  _you_ think, anyway, even if you _were_ right."  
  
    Judy's face scrunched up in anger and she balled her fists, letting out an annoyed grunt and turning away. The barest twinkle of stars were blooming out in the sky. She gazed up at them, sighing. Her anger slowly escaped like air from a balloon.  
  
    "You know, Nick... I've heard a lot of bad guys claim they were doing the right thing, but I've never heard a  _good_ guy insist that they were bad..."  
  
    Nick flinched, but only slightly. Judy couldn't have seen anyway, because she was facing away.  
  
    "Well..." Nick's voice drained of confidence. "Yeah, that's not a thing that happens. I'm  _not_ good."  
  
    Judy turned her head, then the rest of her; she stared at him resolutely.  
  
    "You did a good thing for Skye," Judy said solidly. "No one forced you to. All I did was ask you. Once. The 'dumb bunny'."  
  
    Nick sighed audibly and loudly. "Again with this. It was a moment of weakness, okay?"  
  
    Judy started to look... sad? "I didn't want it to be like this. You're more bitter than when we were at each others' throats."  
  
    "Listen," Nick stepped forward. He'd never really been that close to her. His inner voice screamed that this probably was not a good idea, because he didn't have any speed stored, and Judy could release a kick that could shatter boulders any time she wanted. Hesitating, he wagged his head of his paranoia and continued. That fired a similar set of neurons in his brain, and he got an idea, different than what he was going to say originally. "How did Skye get damaged, again? Tell me it wasn't Jack."  
  
    Judy's jaw dropped a degree or two.  
  
    "It was, wasn't it?" Nick gave a snide grin. He nodded patronizingly. "It was. Oh, how _delicious_." Nick moved up and away from Judy, throwing his arms up to the sky in declaration. "Here I'd WARNED the ZED about Jack, but they didn't listen. Not only did they pay for it, you guys got ME to make it right. Well heck, that's just SWELL. You took my powers AND ten years of my life, all because you wouldn't listen to me. Amazing!"      
  
    Judy merely stared after him in disbelief and disappointment.  
  
    "I'll go..." Judy muttered despondently, turning around and shaking her head. Her ears were drooped, and she almost sounded on the verge of tears. "Wish I'd been at the ZED sooner... I'd have listened to you."  
  
    "Wouldn't have mattered," Nick said. "In a place like that, it's only your superiors that-"  
  
    "I'm glad you think it's so simple," Judy grinned angrily, her eyes bubbling, marching around to stare at Nick. "Really, that we're not all imperfect mammals that somehow know instinctively what's best for all of us. That we can't let our own views cloud our judgement. I'm glad you think that  _your_ opinion is the only one that matters. You know, just because you had a  _hunch_ that turned out to be right! What about Skye, huh? You get a good read on her? Is  _she_ gonna betray us and go nuts too!?"  
  
    "I... don't... know?" Nick blinked at Judy's sudden anger.  
  
    "Ah, that's great, maybe in a few years you'll be able to tell us," Judy punched her paw into her palm. "Obviously you think we're idiots that can't figure it out ourselves. Can't learn from our mistakes. Can't try to make things right."  
  
    "Is there something wrong with her?" Nick blinked.  
  
    Judy gave a trembling sigh. "I don't know. I just... don't. All I know is she's strong. Very strong. I might as well be part of the ZED-A like Brittany; I haven't got to chase down a criminal since... gosh, I don't know how long."  
  
    "Isn't that a good thing?" Nick huffed, folding his arms. "Heck, with someone like her on your side, you guys barely have to do any work. What does it matter  _who_ does something if the objective gets completed?"  
  
    "I just... I want to feel _useful_ to the city," Judy looked up. "All I can do is kick explosions. And I'm kind of resilient. That's nothing compared to Skye. And... it's nothing compared to _you_."  
  
    Nick didn't have a quick answer for that.  
  
    "I'm wondering if Bogo actually expected me to last against you," Judy folded her arms. She gave a weak little kick at the ground, and even that caused an impressive scuff of dust to spurt into the air. "Resilient or not due to my powers, I'm pretty sure you could have killed me at any time."  
  
    "...And what would have been the point in that?" Nick walked over to her. Judy turned and took a few steps away. "Hey... c'mon. Tell me. They just would have found someone better and stronger to-"  
  
    "No, no," Judy's brow fell and she sneered. "It doesn't really work like that though, does it? Powerful mammals don't just grow on trees. The percentage of us with  _really_ strong abilities is marginal compared to those who can just... I dunno,  _hear_ a little bit better than normal. Those of us at the ZED, mammals like _you_... we're the upper echelon. But you're even in a league beyond anything I can do."  
  
    Nick almost chuckled. "Normally I'd like the flattery, but-"  
  
    "Skye's having trouble with her powers," Judy said finally, folding her arms tightly. "She has no idea how to  _hit_ someone with super speed without breaking her bones or  _killing_ them. We've already had one mishap. Granted, the guy was pretty clearly a super-criminal, but..." Judy let out a breath through her teeth. "Bogo can tell her what she's capable of, but actually doing it? Seems to be a different story."  
  
    "It does take some practice," the fox offered. "She'll get the hang of it-"  
  
    "So you see, THAT'S how I know you're a good guy," Judy glared up at him in accusation. "How powerful Skye is now? You could have hurt me, crippled me. I can't heal, I'm just tough. You break my legs? I'm probably done for as a super. You could have killed me.  _Why_ have you always only fought me to a standstill? Are you patronizing me? Or is it because you see something that I can't?"  
  
    The fox didn't answer again. He wasn't totally sure he was certain what his _own_ thoughts on that bunny were.  
  
    "Nick... I'm really sorry about what happened at the ZED," Judy said tenderly, a paw on her chest, and one held out. "I can't change the past. To Bogo's knowledge, no one can. All I can do is try to make things between us better for the future. Whether that's between you and me or you and the ZED or both. Whatever you'd need."  
  
    "You sure are... earnest," Nick let out a small, amused snort. "And more than a little cliche."  
  
    Judy's brow turned up, but she gave a weak smile.  
  
    Nick sighed, folding his hands behind his back. "You remind me of a younger me. One whose dreams hadn't been fully crushed yet. I know you can do good for this city, dumb or not."  
  
    "Are you saying I should quit the ZED?" Judy bobbed her head, leaning over. "Strike out on my own? Vigilante work?" Nick looked skeptical, and held out a paw in caution.  
  
    "Violence breeds violence," Nick frowned. "You remember that thing I said to Brittany? You shouldn't get a taste for it. It's like an addiction. You just need more and more." He rotated his arms at the wrist. "Better not to." He gazed at Judy, looking at her squarely. "If you think that your only meaningful contributions to this world lie in your _legs_ , maybe you really  _are_ a dumb bunny."  
  
    Judy looked amazed. She was pretty sure she'd just gotten a compliment. Not  _entirely_ sure, though. "Huh! Spoken like a true 'villain'."  
  
    Nick pointed at her, his mouth agape, but then his eyes bulged. Mostly, he was confused.  
  
    "Listen..." Judy said softly, about to place a paw on Nick's arm, but thinking better of it. "I'm not going to ask you to join the ZED or anything. I'm not going to ask you to 'be a hero'. ...But I could get you clearance to visit the ZED. Maybe... could you help Skye with her powers? I know you have a lot more experience with your powers than she does. Could you help  _her_ to be a more useful mammal for this world, too?"  
  
    "I'll... think about it," Nick mumbled hesitantly.   
  
    "Here, then," Judy handed him a small, circular object with a "Z" engraving. "It's kind of like a distress beacon. If you press it, the ZED will be alerted to your presence. You can use it if you're in danger and need our help, or if you'd like to visit the ZED. Just press it when you're outside the complex, and we can verify you and shut off the proximity alerts."  
  
    Nick started to laugh, surprising Judy. Her ears perked. "You're just  _giving_ me a tracking device, like it was a gift? Oh, you are amazing." Nick's loud laughs died down. "But... what the heck. I'll take it." Nick plucked it out of her offering paws.  
  
    Judy winced, waiting for a good five seconds for him to throw it over his shoulder or crush it. "Heh heh...!" She awkwardly smiled when neither happened.  
  
    Nick put the device in one of his suit's pockets. He took a few steps and crouched.  
  
    "You can go ahead and tell her this..." Nick led. In an instant, he dashed forward.  
  
    Judy blinked, and then Nick was about an inch away from a wall, which shuddered with the impact of his outstretched hand.  
  
    "Whoa..." the gray bunny marveled. "How did you not shatter your paw?"  
  
    "Because I didn't hit the wall," Nick explained, displaying the mentioned paw. "The force of breaking the air with my fist at such speeds can deliver a good amount of focused force, even if I don't actually  _hit_ the target. That lets me attack several times without pausing to have to heal whatever I hit something with."  
  
    "So... kinda like what I do with my kicks!" Judy looked really excited.  
  
    "Eh..." Nick casually shrugged his non-punching paw. "Kinda."  
  
    "I knew you were a good mammal, Nick, I knew it! Haha!" Judy leaped into the air, kicking both of her legs. The bursts from her feet sent her sailing further into the air in a double jump. She twirled around and fist-pumped as she landed.  
  
    "Boy, you're easy to make happy," Nick rolled his eyes.  
  
    "Like I said, any time you wanna drop by the ZED, just give that button a press!" Judy saluted. "It won't track 'til you turn it on, so don't worry about us stalking you!" She giggled and jumped higher, using her kicks to propel herself and fly through the air in a series of clacks.  
  
    "I feel like the only one around here who hasn't figured out how to use my abilities to fly," Nick huffed in mock disappointment, folding his arms.  
  
    Maybe that thing with his mother would be child's play compared to the complications he was dealing with at the ZED. Nick groaned and started to head away.  
  
    She was a dumb bunny. But she was right, there  _was_ something he saw in her. Something he didn't want broken, and that he definitely didn't want to break himself.  
  
    That hopeful earnestness. That feeling that things even  _could_ be right in this world.  
  
    Nick wanted her to hold onto that... even if he kept feeling it slip away.


	3. It Begins

    It was a troublesome day for Nick.  
  
    It started innocently enough. Nick was wrestling with the idea of going to either the ZED on the southwestern outskirts of Zootopia or his mother's house in the middle of the Meadowlands, maybe both. He could certainly make good time either way.  
  
    Nick took a few super-speed bursts toward his mother's house once, but stopped before he got into her subdivision.  
  
    He could already imagine how it was going to go. His mother was a very strong-willed vixen, but also very emotional.  
  
    The hugs, the crying, the apologies. It would have been smothering, overwhelming.  
  
    Not to say that Nick didn't  _want_ those feelings. He most certainly did.   
  
    Somewhere deep inside though, he felt like he didn't deserve them. Just the littlest bit of self-doubt. That was married to the discomfort he'd likely feel, and it ended up steering him away from his mother's house for the second time that day. He jogged in the direction of the ZED, taking speed bursts when he could.   
  
    The ZED. How they'd plagued him for that decade.   
  
    Nick seethed. He knew they weren't all bad. He knew Judy in particular had a good heart. He got a good feeling about Skye too, if he was honest. And that other little vixen there, Brittany... she was earnest, helpful, and devoted.   
  
    He felt somewhat responsible for Brittany rejecting the path of the Enforcer and instead going into the Assistance.  
  
    Then, he remembered how it felt to be pierced in all directions by her icicles. Unpleasant, to say the least. Hurt worse than the jaguar's bone needles, if he was honest.   
  
    Then there was that tailhole, Jack. He'd committed a crime, a bank robbery, and gathered false evidence to implicate Nick. The fox had already told that strange-patterned bunny how little he thought of him, and told Bogo what a loose cannon he seemed like.  
  
    So, not only was he kind of on the run for two killings, but a bank robbery as well. If he was going to rob a bank, he'd at least like the courtesy of actually having the cash.  
  
    Not that money was currently being an issue.  
  
    Nick decided to go "home" to the room he crashed in on the second floor of Honey's Rainforest District tree house. He dressed casually, putting on his usual loud shirt and mismatched tie. The fox made his excruciatingly slow -at least, in his opinion- "normal"-speed way to the local post-office and checked his box.  
  
    Shoo... another thousand bucks in an unmarked envelope.  
  
    He didn't know how it was getting there, but he knew it was the ZED. Somewhere between a bribe and a thanks for his actions regarding Skye. Probably not Jack. Nick had attempted to interfere when that rabbit attacked the ZED, but he honestly didn't know if it was more out of pride, or that a few mammals he'd have preferred not to die resided there. Nick huffed at the thought, amused. Is that how he was going to play it off?  
  
    Before long, Nick was hanging out at a Rainforest District outdoors bar, having a tasty, filling fish pasta meal and relaxing.  
  
    It was pretty nice to eat on the ZED's dime, he had to admit.  
  
    They'd given him quite a hefty payment the first time he bothered to check. Several thousand. In a bit of guilt, he'd surreptitiously given his mother about a third of it. He didn't know why, it just seemed like the right thing to do. He didn't expect to see any more, but on a few completely random days, he saw another payment.   
  
     _Were_ they trying to bribe him to join the ZED? Nick sucked at his teeth at the thought.   
  
    The wide-screen TVs at the diner had sports and news on. Nick's eyes defensively swiveled over to one of the ZNN's reports when he heard the dreadful words "in other news". He hoped it wouldn't be another story about him, and that had been relegated to the night news for a reason.  
  
    "We bring you a report about a declaration made by the mayor of Zootopia, Dawn Bellwether," Peter Moosebridge, the moose anchor, began. Nick relaxed a few degrees.  
  
    "Take a look," Fabienne Growley, a snow leopard anchor, continued.  
  
    Nick's eyes went back up to the TV.  
  
    "As you all may have known," Bellwether began, her voice squeaky and almost mousey, "the ZED has been the sole source of government-related regulation of 'Empowered' mammals in Zootopia. I've decided to take steps to change that." A few murmurs at the conference began, and Bellwether adjusted her glasses, looking more resolute. "Settle down, please, settle down. We've tolerated the ZED's autonomy too long. They never ended up bringing justice to the murder of our dear former Mayor Lionheart." She placed a hand on her chest. "Rest his soul. That was the ZPD that had to solve the case. Against an Empowered giraffe who hated preds, no less, no easy feat!"  
  
    Nick was puzzled at the Mayor's announcement. He scooted closer to his chair, eating his food more guardedly.  
  
    "It's my belief that some sort of... anti-pred bias runs subtly through the ZED and colors its actions," Bellwether held up a finger.  
  
    "Mayor Bellwether, ma'am!" A bull news reporter who seemed to be trying not to be insulted spoke up.  
  
    "Please, let me explain," Bellwether went on. "The ZED itself admitted they had wrongly persecuted a fox, one Nicholas Wilde, for _ten years_. Did they explain why they suddenly dropped the charges? No! It's no wonder to me that this is the case. The leader of the ZED is a big, strong buffalo. He controls everyone very tightly. Did you know his primary Enforcer is still a bunny, though he has more capable and durable fox and tiger Enforcers on his team? I am going to seek integration of the Empowered with all of our departments. We shouldn't allow them to be corralled in one place and controlled by one mammal."  
  
    The conference room exploded with questions.  
  
    "What sort of time frame do the changes you propose take place over?"  
  
    "The next few years," Bellwether nodded.  
  
    "Are you seeking to dismiss Commander Bogo as the head of the ZED?"  
  
    Bellwether shook her head firmly. "Not at this time."  
  
    Nick took in a long breath and let it out through his nose, looking away from the TV. Just what was going on?  
  
    "Wowie..."   
  
    Nick heard a casual voice behind him at another table. It belonged to an easy-going looking pig, who was sitting at a bar next to a mostly-black bunny.  
  
    "You hearin' this, Oz?" The pig leaned down to the bunny. "What do you think that sheep is up to?"  
  
    "Beats me, tch, I hate politics," the bunny grumbled. "Hadn't the mayor been blasted for her anti-pred sentiments when she was Lionheart's assistant? Seems fishy to me."  
  
    Nick frowned. His mind was working overdrive to try to connect the mayor to anything that had happened in the previous couple of months, but he was coming up empty.  
  
    "Hey, pardon me," Nick heard a rather cute voice off to the side, and looked down to see a twenty-something red panda near his table. She wasn't a waitress, and she was carrying some sort of expensive-looking camera.  
  
    "Yeah? What can I do for you, miss?" Nick blinked.  
  
    "Can I get a picture of you?" The red panda asked, giving a small smile. "You're that fox that they pardoned, right? Nick Wilde?"  
  
    "Oh no, no no no," Nick said, trying to keep his cool, though he felt his heart accelerating. "He does look like me though, doesn't he? You know all us foxes are roguishly handsome."  
  
    "Um... okay," the red panda nodded. "Huh, I could have sworn you were him. Sorry, I guess it's like how they say all red pandas are cute, huh?"  
  
    "Well you're not doing anything to disprove _that_ ," Nick wiggled his finger at her with a sly grin.  
  
    "Aw, well thanks," she said brightly. "Sorry to bother you, sir!" She hopped over to a table with a young fox with some black where he should have had white or cream. The two gave him a look, trying to be subtle about it.  
  
    "You sure that's not him...?" Asked the fox.  
  
    "I mean, he _said_ it wasn't..."  
  
    Nick decided he'd overstayed his welcome, feeling more uncomfortable by the minute. He grabbed a few bills, dashed them to the table, and left abruptly, adjusting his tie. He'd probably way overspent, even for a generous tip.  
  
    Oh well, it wasn't really "his" money, anyway.  
  


* * *

  
    Still in his civilian clothes, Nick was walking down the streets leading to his mother's suburb, Shady Greens. The evening was cool, pleasant, and a little balmy. Nick was traveling some distance from the sidewalk, where he wouldn't be seen. The trees rustled with the sound of the wind, and overall it was very peaceful.  
  
    Something made Nick look behind him.  
  
    He didn't know what. It wasn't an unusual sound, as he heard nothing out of sorts. It wasn't a strange sight or shadow, as the moon was in front of him. It wasn't a smell, as the wind was going in the wrong direction. It was  _some_ kind of feeling.  
  
    He looked, and then turned to face the figure he saw in the distance.  
  
    It was a fox, clothed in a steely-blue cloak and simplistic, form-fitting clothing. The fox seemed rather short, though was still comparable to Nick, and they had bluish fur. Nick could also make out yellow eyes peering from underneath the cloak. His night vision was exceptionally good.  
  
    "Red fox."  
  
    The voice of the fox was masculine, but light. It sounded rather young. Nick supposed, based on his height, that he was between sixteen and eighteen years of age.  
  
    "Blue fox," Nick replied, pointing to him, then himself. "One fox, two fox?"  
  
    "Are you the one they call the 'Hustler'?" Asked the blue fox.  
  
    "You know," Nick wiggled his finger at the fox, shaking his head. "That is a  _really_ good costume. I'm serious, I dig it. The fur dye, the 'edginess'. Really great. I think it's a little late to be going to a convention, though. Are you lost?"  
  
    "The Hustler," the fox repeated. "Is that you?"  
  
    "Well, I wouldn't want to get your hopes up," Nick shrugged, wishing he'd had some tension in his legs. "I'm just some random red fox skulking around the forest. Y'know, it connects me to my ancestors and all that."  
  
    The fox stood essentially motionless. This unnerved Nick, who was busy plotting a course of his escape. He'd need a straight shot of about a dozen or so full strides to get far enough away to not be followed, but the trees made this a dicey proposition.  
  
    "If I was 'the Hustler'," Nick chuckled lightly, "then what? Would you want an autograph?"  
  
    The fox paused before answering. "Something like that."  
  
    The blue fox reached into his cloak and from his hip, he drew a simple short sword.  
  
    "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Nick waved his paws. "An assassin!? No, you  _definitely_ have the wrong guy."  
  
    "We'll see about that," the blue fox quipped, launching himself forward. Nick scooted off to the side, and the blue fox's first slash cut into a tree. "I'm not an assassin. I'm the Appointed."  
  
    "Oh, that's a relief," Nick's voice pinched, "because it looked like you just swung a sword at me."  
  
    Another slash aimed at Nick horizontally. He dove forward and scampered a pace or two on all fours. That wouldn't work to build his energy, he needed to get back to his feet, and quickly! The young fox assaulting him seemed pretty decent with his blade.  
  
    "I've been chosen to bring this city under control," the fox said, swiping again at Nick. He backed up several steps, trying to adjust his stance higher so he would have more space to crouch. He felt his feet gripping at the ground with each backwards step, wanting to stay level.  
  
    "You know, your stance is all wrong," Nick chuckled nervously, watching the "Appointed". He remained low to the ground, and held his arms out quite far from his body. It was undoubtedly a "cool" pose. Nick's brain launched into overdrive to try to analyze this mysterious attacker. "You're gonna lose your sword to someone if its out that far."  
  
    "I've my reasons," the Appointed replied evenly.   
  
    "I don't know who 'appointed' you," Nick offered, holding up his paws defensively, "but even if you were after that 'Hustler' guy, what for? He was pardoned!"  
  
    "I'm not going to kill you," the Appointed claimed, resting his hand on his sword. Nick noticed the blade start to subtly glow. The Appointed took a wide swipe that didn't even have a chance of hitting Nick. Instead, he aimed the flat of his blade at a tree.  
  
    PLAAKK!  
  
    A bright shockwave exploded from the side of the tree, sending splinters and energy scattering. Nick was caught by the wave and dashed backwards, hitting the ground on his haunches.   
  
    "I only require a sample," the Appointed said, again returning his paw to his cloak. He brought out three four-pointed throwing stars, which all began to glow.  
  
    Nick's eyes widened, then he rolled to the side.   
  
    TK-TK-TK!  
  
    It had seemed like he made the right choice. The impact of the throwing stars into the ground sent thin shockwaves forward in the rough direction of their travel.  
  
    Nick launched to his feet, turned tail, and started to run away. The fluttering of cloth told him that the Appointed was giving chase. Looking behind him, the red fox saw that the blue one had a decent running stance, with his sword trailing behind him. Nick's brow fell, and after just six strides, he crouched. It wasn't enough to make a clean getaway, but it would be enough for his goal: to teach this kit a lesson.  
  
    The Appointed had only started to come to a halt when he saw Nick swiveling in the dirt from his crouching stance. That was the last thing his mind registered before Nick made his attack.  
  
    A quick dash forward, and the sheer force of Nick's movement slowed and unbalanced the blue fox. Nick punched the air several times in several places close to the Appointed. His feet twitched as he transferred the energy from them all the way into his paws, which flicked forward at incredible speeds. Blurry strikes attacked the air near the blue fox, and after ten or so to non-vital areas, Nick finished with a stronger, straight punch that came to a halt very close to the Appointed's midsection.  
  
    "Ghuuhgh!"   
  
    The Appointed flew back, his form hitting a tree before slumping down. His sword flipped twice in the air and drove cleanly into the ground.  
  
    The blue fox's yellow eyes were wide as he gasped, feeling extremely weak and out of breath. Pain flooded his whole form, and he felt like he could barely move.   
  
    "You... _are_ him..." the Appointed panted.  
  
    "Whatever you're doing, I'd suggest you give up," Nick said in a low voice. He sneered, but mostly because of the heat his clothes had accumulated from his short dash.   
  
    "It can't be over this soon..." the Appointed's head bobbed.  
  
    "Yeah, well, I'm afraid that's what happens when you tangle with someone who's both stronger and wiser than you," Nick's voice turned almost airy, but contained a darkness. "You've got a lot to learn, but I'm going to tell you to _get off this path_."  
  
    "You can't tell me what path to walk, dog!" The Appointed yelled angrily with a surge of desperate energy. Though grunting in pain, he grabbed at his nearby sword, charged it with energy, and flung it. It missed Nick by a good meter.  
  
    Nick smirked. "You miss-"  
  
    PLAAKK!  
  
    The sword hit a tree, and the shockwave traveled backwards into Nick. It was too far away to hurt, but he stumbled forward.  
  
    "Uraagh!" As the distance closed between the two, The Appointed roared and attacked Nick with a wild swipe of his right claws.  
  
    Nick didn't even need his speed. The attack was sloppy, marred by the pain the Appointed was definitely in. He caught the fox's arm by his wrist.  
  
    "Listen close, boy," Nick spoke darkly and quietly, regaining his balance and shaking his captive's arm. "Watch what you do with these paws, before you find yourself unable to use them."  
  
    Nick's expression almost softened as he saw his opponent's eyes widen with genuine fear, his breath catching.  
  
    "Aagh!"   
  
    Nick held up his paw to catch the other set of claws that he knew was coming his way.  
  
    PFFFK!  
  
    Instead, the Appointed had removed his cloak in one smooth motion, charged it with energy, and tossed it at Nick. It was like being hit by the fist of a medium-weight mammal. Nick staggered back.  
  
    The Appointed struggled to his feet and regained his sword while Nick quickly tossed the cloak away from him. It was clear how much smaller the fox was compared to Nick, and how much his form trembled. His tail was as bushy as a red fox's, though colored blue where it should be red.  
  
    "Don't play this game," Nick balled up his fists. "You clearly don't know what move to make. But I do." He half-crouched, preparing the last of his stored energy, mostly in a bluff.  
  
    It worked. The Appointed whimpered and flinched. The young blue fox quickly sheathed his sword. Releasing a small cry of anger blended with frustration, he turned tail and ran.  
  
    Nick thought about pursuing him, but that was a risk he couldn't take.   
  
    In any case, he knew where he had to go. First thing in the morning, he'd be knocking on the door of the ZED's complex.   
  


* * *

  
    From a distance, the ZED's complex looked almost futuristic. Grays, whites, and blacks all came together like a grayscale miniature of Zootopia itself. Nick pondered the architecture and technology that went into making it just what it was before fishing that ZED beacon out of a pocket on his suit.  
  
    "Well, here goes."  
  
    Nick clicked the beacon, but nothing seemed to happen. He stood there for five minutes that seemed to be twenty. After ten, he checked his watch.  
  
    "Really? Well, good thing I wasn't in trouble..."  
  
    The fox backed off from the complex a few paces. He knew what he had to do to enter it easily, and the thought didn't appeal to him. The nearest tall building was almost a quarter mile from the perimeter, and if he was going to pull a stunt like he was thinking off, he'd prefer to have a building to slow his fall.  
  
    Nick jerked his head to the side to banish his apprehension, then took twelve quick strides forward before crouching, feeling power flood his body.  
  
    He pushed off with both feet instead of just one.  
  
    It was all Nick could do not to scream as he flew through the air at a shallow angle, breaching the airspace of the ZED complex, feeling the wind howl at his sides. Of course, his super-jumps were thrilling, but the landings were far less so.  
  
    "Oof! Urgh! Umph. Grrh!"  
  
    Luckily, most of Nick's tumbling was caught by the earth, though he started to skid onto sidewalk before long. His body cried out in pain as random areas smacked the ground and his nerves lit up like pinball bumpers.  
  
    Ksssshh....  
  
    Finally, he skidded to a halt right in front of the welcoming fountain to the ZED. Nick looked up to take it in, slurping in a gulp of air as his healing factor righted the wrongs that Nick had just inflicted on his body.  
  
    The statue was white, nearly gleaming. It was of a broad-shouldered deer with fists on his hips and a classic "superhero" smile. He wore a bomber jacket, and looked very much the part of the hero that the ZED apparently liked to think of itself as.   
  
    Nick found himself staring at it for several seconds while he started to push off the ground, the peaceful trickling of the fountain filling his ears. He was trying to remember the name of that "hero", the first true "Enforcer" of the ZED, once they'd gotten organized.  
  
    Thunder Strike? Something like that.  
  
    Just a few more seconds, though, and Nick's attention was directed to movement off to the side. In a grassy field, he saw a stage and chairs being set up. Electronic equipment, and...  
  
    Uh oh.  
  
    A group of masked guards of various sizes, all carrying two-handed firearms, started to surround Nick. With a last grunt, Nick found himself standing up, but a circle of guards had formed around him. They all leveled their weapons at Nick and clicking sounds filled the air.  
  
    "Uh, hey guys!" Nick greeted.  
  
    "Paws up where we can see them!" A stern voice shouted. "No bending the knees!" Nick quickly obeyed.  
  
    Part of the circle broke to let a tigress in. She was statuesque, even for a tigress, and was wearing the blue-trimmed light armor of an Enforcer. She looked at the surrounded fox with mild disdain.  
  
    "Ah, it's Wilde."  
  
    "Fangmeyer!" Nick seemed relieved. "Fangie! Ol'- ol' Kristen! Krissie!" His paws twitched, and a guard took careful aim at Nick.  
  
    "Just Fangmeyer is fine, I despise your 'nick'names," she frowned. "What are you doing here? Breaching our defensive perimeter YET AGAIN?"  
  
    "Figured a little drop-in couldn't hurt," Nick coughed, trying to smile. "Except for me, that is. Really need to learn how to stick the landing on my super jump..."  
  
    An even bigger part of the defensive circle broke to let in the large buffalo Commander Bogo. He cast an imposing shadow over Nick, even though the fox knew that he had no offensive powers to speak of.   
  
    "Nick Wilde," Bogo greeted evenly, folding his arms behind his back.  
  
    "Hey! Chief!" Nick's face lit up. "Was hoping to see you, actually. I have something to report, sir!"  
  
    Bogo and Fangmeyer exchanged an incredulous look.   
  
    "We happen to be very busy right now, Wilde," Bogo said flatly. He nodded his head over to the stage that was being assembled. "So, if you could come back later, when we are  _less_ busy, and perhaps use more  _conventional_ methods, I would be all-too-happy to listen to you." His voice became irritable and the slightest bit condescending.  
  
    Nick looked at the stage. "Ah, right, I guess you gotta get a statement out against all that flak the mayor threw at you."  
  
    Fangmeyer flicked her paw forward, and a small burst of wind cause Nick to stagger back into the guards behind him, who pushed him back into the center of the circle.  
  
    "Will you watch your muzzle for  _one_ moment?" Fangmeyer snarled. "The nerve of this mammal! Breaking into our complex like he owns the place!"  
  
    "Ugh! Well, might have deserved that," Nick chuckled.  
  
    "Guards, please escort Mr. Wilde to the entrance," Bogo said plainly. Guards began to close in on the fox.  
  
    "Wait, wait!" Nick waved his paws. "This is important! It's about...!"  
  
    Nick's words failed him as he caught Bogo's eye and the guards actually stopped in response. Confusion spread through them all as Nick started to move his paws in a strange manner. He placed his fist on his arm, lifted his thumb, and placed it on his neck, pushing his thumb back in.  
  
    "What is this fool on about?" Fangmeyer grunted.  
  
    "I don't know," Bogo snorted. "Okay, Wilde. Let's do a little walk and talk." The guards lowered their weapons, a couple of them looking at each other, baffled.  
  
    "Sir!" Fanmeyer's eyes flew open. "May I just say that I think that this is a  _terrible_ idea? Will you at least take Skye as a bodyguard?"  
  
    Bogo shook his head. "To some degree, we should trust Wilde. After all, if he  _really_ wanted, we'd have all died to him a hundred times over before now."  
  
    Nick gave an ingratiating smile to the tigress, to which Fangmeyer scrunched up her face in disgust. Compelled to obey, the tiger uttered a "yes, sir..." and motioned the guards to follow her back to the press event.  
  
    The fox glanced over at the crowd before turning his attention back to Bogo as they walked. "Wow, you guys have really tightened up security on the place. Are those guards all unempowered?"  
  
    "I think you'd agree that was a necessary step, given what happened to us with Savage," Bogo said, shaking his head. "...Thank you again for your attempted assistance on the matter."  
  
    "Well, it'd've been better had I finished the job," Nick frowned. "That little bunny was basically the reason I lost so much of my life to you guys."  
  
    "If you want a personal apology rather than public, I will give it to you," Bogo actually looked somewhat remorseful, "though I can't give you what you really deserve, which is time. No one can."  
  
    "Really? Not even with the..." Nick pointed at his own eyes. He knew Bogo had the ability to sense the potential powers of any empowered mammal within a large radius.  
  
    Bogo wagged his head. "I hope at least the monetary compensation is easing your troubles a little bit."  
  
    "Yeah, awful kind of you," Nick huffed with a mild smile. "Between that and this-" he pulled out the beacon, "-I'd say you were trying to recruit me!"  
  
    Bogo's jaw dropped slightly. "Where did you get that!? That's a officer-issued distress beacon!"  
  
    Nick opened his mouth to speak, but decided he better not reply truthfully. "I... um... found it."  
  
    The buffalo's mouth shut and he made a frustrated chewing motion. "It was Hopps, wasn't it? Fool bunny. Well, if you'd really  _want_ a distress beacon of your own, I'd have to actually get someone to activate it. Else we wouldn't get a signal from it."  
  
    "Would you?" Nick offered up the beacon to Bogo's outstretched hand. He winced as he expected Bogo to nonchalantly crush it, but instead he carefully flipped it over and pressed a device in his ear.  
  
    "Skippel," Bogo said. "When you get a moment, could you activate beacon 210? ...Yes. Yes, I know you're busy with other orders. Low priority. ...Uh, give it the username..." his eyes flicked over to the fox, who smiled slightly. "Ugh... 'Hustler'. ...Yes, really. Bogo out."  
  
    Bogo flipped the device back to Nick, who caught and pocketed it. "Now, could you tell me why you're here? As I said, I have things to do."  
  
    "Oh, right, right," Nick nodded quickly. "Well, yesterday night, I was attacked."  
  
    "Yes?" Bogo frowned. "I trust you didn't have much trouble defending yourself."  
  
    "No, not really," Nick frowned. "I was just concerned about the... the  _nature_ of the attacker. He called himself the Appointed, and I think he was an empowered red fox."  
  
    "You 'think'?" Bogo squinted. "Was he in a suit?"  
  
    "Well, his fur was blue, but I think it was just dye," Nick chuckled lightly. "He had a real 'edgelord' thing going on. Even had a sword." He waved his paws dismissively. "Anyway, that's not the important thing. The  _important_ thing is he said he wanted a 'sample' from me, and he attacked me with sharp objects, like the sword, throwing stars, and even his claws. Like, I think he was specifically trying to get me to bleed. And you know what that means..."  
  
    Bogo's eyes widened slightly. "That... a 'sample'. ...Hm." He seemed to think. His eyes lost their pupils and irises, and he gazed out with solid white eyes over the city for a full minute.  
  
    Nick checked his surroundings for other listeners, and drew in a little closer. "I think he might have been after my powers, you know? Red fox blood and all that."  
  
    "That would indeed be gravely concerning, but that topic was only a theory until it was applied to Skye," Bogo rubbed at his chin. "Also, between us, I have been keeping a close eye on the powers I can sense from canid shapes in the city. I've been looking to see if any one of them has gained powers. None have, thus far. So, unless the fact that red foxes can transfer power by blood has leaked, I don't see how a random empowered fox could possibly know about it. Did he seem at  _all_ familiar?"  
  
    "No..." Nick's tentatively good humor seemed to vanish. "Tch, so. You don't believe me."  
  
    Bogo looked hesitant, holding a hand up. "It's not that. It's just... I want to proceed with caution, given the nature of this information. You know what happened the last time we persecuted a fox based off of circumstantial evidence. Especially with this blasted mayor breathing down our necks, threatening our autonomy."  
  
    "I get what you're saying, but...!" Nick held up a finger.  
  
    "Trust me, Wilde," Bogo regained his firm stance. "There's nothing I would like  _less_ than a small army of empowered red foxes that all have super speed and are nearly impossible to kill. As it is, we're lucky enough that the only two with those powers are Skye and yourself. What sort of powers did this 'Appointed' have? I can try to keep my eyes out for him."  
  
    Nick took a grave nod. "Okay, he had the ability to charge objects with-"  
  
    The fox's train of thought was broken by a rumble. Then, another rumble traveled through the air. Another, and another. It sounded like an earthquake, but it was going on in midair.   
  
    Looking to the side, Nick saw a terrifying sight. Further back in the forest surrounding Zotopia, maybe a few miles away on a hill, was an unnaturally dense lightning storm. Purple arcs of electricity streaked through the sky at a frightening rate of nearly one every second, causing a continuous rumble to permeate the air around it. Many bolts also traveled to the ground, the first of which made Nick flinch.   
  
    "Oh _no_..." Bogo looked absolutely terrified, which confused Nick.  
  
    Nick heard the whistling of wind, and Fangmeyer dropped to the ground near them; she  _also_ looked scared, which Nick hadn't ever seen before, even when they were battling Savage.  
  
    "Commander Bogo!" Fangmeyer wailed, her voice wavering. "Is that...?"  
  
    Bogo's eyes became featureless again and he grunted. "Yes... it is. Postpone the conference, now! Get the task force ready as soon as possible!"  
  
    "It's finally time, then..." Fangmeyer grit her teeth.  
  
    "Get moving, Fangmeyer!" Bogo shouted.  
  
    "Sir!" Fangmeyer saluted, then blasted off with a burst of wind, causing Nick to shield himself with his paws.  
  
    "What's going on, Chief?" Nick's face was lined with worry.  
  
    "It's _Commander_ , and this is ZED business, not yours," Bogo said sternly. "For your own safety, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."  
  
    "But sir-"  
  
    Bogo held a hand up. "I will make a note of your concerns. Just press that beacon if you're attacked by that individual again, got it?"  
  
    Nick didn't look entirely convinced, but he nodded, feeling for the device in his pocket. Shaking his head, he turned to leave the complex through the normal means.  
  
    Two masked security guards stopped him on the way, looking him over.  
  
    "Hey, it's Wilde!" One said jovially. The helmet made him look like he had swords for horns, probably an oryx. "Hey Wilde. Heard you almost stopped Savage when he went bonkers."  
  
    "Yeah, 'tried'," another replied. The mask was boar-ish. "'Almost' only counts in horseshoes, Rutmin."  
  
    "Pff, well, you're clear to leave!" Rutmin saluted Nick.  
  
    The fox grumbled inwardly as he walked at a slow pace away from the complex. He looked in the direction of the lightning storm, which was only slightly abating from the alarming frequency of earlier.   
  
    What could be so scary that would give even the ZED pause?  
  
    Whatever it was, Nick could probably have it wrapped up before they even got there.  
  
    "Tch," Nick sneered. Let them take care of it. They had Skye, and they obviously thought he was superfluous due to that fact.   
  
    ...But what if someone was in danger?  
  
    You're not a hero, Nick, his warring inner voice warned.  
  
    "Damnit," Nick cursed, took several long strides, and started dashing in the direction of the lightning storm.


	4. For the Last Time

    Nick approached the sparse forest, his speed boosts zipping him to and fro. The lightning was becoming dense; surely it wasn't of natural causes. No rain accompanied the severe storm. He surmised he could be there long before any ZED personnel could, with the exception of Skye, perhaps, but he was on his guard just the same.  
  
    The only trouble was, Nick wasn't sure what he was looking for.  
  
    As peal after peal of thunder blasted over him, lightning flashing in so many directions that it was impossible to tell where it was coming from, Nick pressed on, a paw in front of his eyes. He'd never been struck by lightning before, and felt the sinking sensation of fear as he didn't know if he'd be able to take it. He felt as though he was gambling his life, and for what?  
  
    Several trees around him were either charred or currently on fire. Running and bursting here and there, he tried following what he thought was a path of the marked trees, which led further and further away from the direction of Zootopia proper. It wasn't too long before he finally came upon something, a mammal.  
  
    It was an elderly deer, huffing and wheezing, his sounds drowned out by the crashes of thunder around him. Fearfully the old buck hobbled along, seeming to be in a race for his life. He checked to the sides and behind him, cowering at the sound of the thunder.  
  
    Nick grit his teeth, dashing in front of him.  
  
    "Old mammal!" The fox called out. The deer stopped and stared at him in disbelief. "Come on! Let me get you to safety!" The fox hoped he was audible over the continuous rumble of thunder.  
  
    "You young fool!" The deer thrust out an arm, pointing at him. Fear was all over the bucks eyes and trembling mouth. "It is _you_ who is in danger! Leave this forest at once!"  
  
    Nick jerked his head to the side as if to dispel the notion. "No, come on! I can help you!" He held a paw forward and walked toward the elderly mammal.  
  
    A blinding flash, and Nick was assaulted by the loudest sound he'd heard in his life. He cowered, bowing and covering his ears as his body quickly worked to negate the damage to his innards. He jerked his muzzle upward.  
  
    "Oh God...!"  
  
    The deer had been struck by lightning directly. Purple and blue strands of electricity coursed through him and he screamed with all of his energy.  
  
    Nick could only gape in disbelief; he was watching some poor old mammal die.  
  
    As a second passed though, the deer continued yelling. The tone changed from pain to anger, then to triumph. Nick got to his feet and took a few steps back. The deer brought his arms up and clenched his hands into fists, his eyes glowing a dull purple.  
  
    "HraaaaaaaaaaAAAAA HAHA HAAAAA!"  
  
    The old mammal suddenly stood proud, chest out. Through his age, Nick saw a confidence that communicated his bewildering transformation. He grit his teeth and he could swear he saw a flash of light from the old pearls of the deer.   
  
    "BEHOLD, YOUNG ONE!" The deer took confident steps. "You stand before the one and only... THUNDERRRRR STRIKERRRRRRRR...!"  
  
    The sound of thunder waned as if in reference to the proclamation. Nick was starting to wonder if Commander Bogo didn't have some kind of point about his aversion to aliases.  
  
    Thunder Striker... it sounded somehow familiar to Nick, though he couldn't place it.  
  
    "Ah... okay then!" Nick looked left and right, and saw far fewer flashes of lightning. "Uh, so you're all right, then? I guess I'll be going now."  
  
    "Hahahahaha!" The empowered mammal only laughed in return.  
  
    Another zap of lightning landed behind Nick, far too close for comfort. He yelped and dashed forward out of the way. There was no outrunning lightning, but it was a flash of self-preserving instinct.  
  
    "Ha HA!" Thunder Striker turned his body toward Nick, stepping one foot forward and posing with a fist brought up. "I see you are Empowered as well!" Even his voice had made a complete transformation; from elderly frailty to a bold booming baritone. "Come then! Let us do battle!"  
  
    "Wh- what? Huh?" Nick held his paws up. "No thanks- I'll- I'll pass on that one."   
  
    "Come!" The buck punched his hoof fists together, causing a low rumble. "Let me see to what Empowered mammals I am leaving the world to!"  
  
    Nick started running to the side, eager to avoid whatever power this buck was about to display. Just about a dozen steps, and he could dash out of the forest for good. To his shock, he saw Thunder Striker start to follow his movement with a rapid dash of his own.  
  
    The buck's feet seemed to leave the ground, and he rushed forward with a burst of air and speed, leaving sparks in his wake. He headed Nick off.  
  
    "Take this, fox!"  
  
    The hoofed punch landed heavily on Nick's chest, and with an "OOF!", he went flying back into a tree.   
  
    Nick growled as the pain slowly subsided. It definitely wasn't a normal punch, it seemed to tingle as the pain dispersed through his body. Nick's healing powers fought it off, and he got up, rubbing his stomach.  
  
    "Resilient! That is a plus!" Thunder Striker boomed with his fists on his hips. He took a step back and drew back his fist.  
  
    Nick decided he'd at least have to stave this crazy old coot off before he could make his escape. He used some of his built-up power to dash forward and started to direct a flurry of non-contact blows at Thunder Striker. He ended with a straight punch that just barely missed the old mammal's midsection. Looking up at his opponent, Nick's eyes bulged as he merely saw an amused smile glaring back down at him.  
  
    "HRAAAAAH!" Thunder Striker whirled forward, attacking with a backhanded punch. Nick again went flying, this time his back catching a branch.  
  
    "Ugh-!" Nick yelped in pain as he flailed to the ground, rolling around to face his adversary.  
  
    "You direct your blows at the air!?" Thunder Striker boomed. "You must not hesitate!"  
  
    "Didn't want to hurt an old mammal," Nick rubbed at his healing back, though he was beginning to change his mind.  
  
    "I told you, boy!" Thunder striker punched his fists together again. "It's you who are in danger!"  
  
    Nick sprang from his seated position with a burst of speed, thrusting his shoulder and elbow into Thunder Striker. It was all the strength and speed he could muster from such a position.  
  
    "Hurrf!" The force caused Thunder Striker to stagger back a few steps, though Nick's momentum carried him further. Wishing to create space, Nick spent the last of his speed energy directing it into two punches that landed on both sides of the elderly mammal's chest. "Hnnnnnn!" The deer went sliding backwards, though didn't quite lose his footing.  
  
    Nick jumped back, eager to see if this was the opening he needed to start replenishing his energy.  
  
    "Ha ha ha ha...!" Thunder Striker grinned at Nick with a measure of respect and admiration. "HAAAA HAHAHAHA! Yes! YES! That's more like it! You're a worthy young todd... had we met earlier in life, I should have liked to take you under my wing! Now! Show me how you'd handle THIS situation!" The deer thrust to his side and grabbed hold of a dead and charred young tree. Electricity seemed to course through him as with a mighty yell, he uprooted it.  
  
    "Uh... _huh_ ," Nick's eyes bugged again, and he actually stopped mid-step without crouching, stunned by the display of raw strength. He started running again when Thunder Striker's mighty laugh started up again and he began to swing the tree like a massive bat at Nick.  
  
    Desperately, Nick crouched as the wooden weapon made for him. At the last second, he jumped and kicked off of the tree right before it made contact.  
  
    "Oof!" Thunder striker was knocked back from the force as the tree was sent outward and he tried to keep his hold on it.  
  
    Unfortunately for Nick, in his panic he had far overestimated the strength he would need.  
  
    "Yaaaaaaghhh!"  
  
    The propulsion of both feet landing on the dead tree send him sailing through the air at a shallow angle. He could barely look behind him as the treetops started slashing him with leaves. Desperately, he held his paws up and turned them at the wrist. Feeling a burning pain in his palms, he knew he'd caught a thick branch. Nick's momentum was diverted upward and he flipped through the air, using instinct and his tail to land solidly on the branch in a crouch.  
  
    "Hrgh!" Nick felt adrenaline flood him, but he'd stuck the landing. Looking around, he'd flown so far he'd lost sight of Thunder Striker. "What, he wasn't even here to see that?"   
  
    The branch abruptly snapped and Nick fell, finding himself on the forest floor again, wobbling unsteadily. In the far distance, he caught sight of armed ZED guards of all sizes marching towards the last known position of Thunder Striker.  
  
    His senses switching from battle to caution, Nick hid himself behind the large tree he'd just robbed of a branch. They were too far away to see him, and evidently none of them had any special perceptional powers, as they kept marching for Striker.  
  
    Curiosity burned within Nick. What would they want with that crazy old buck? He didn't dare go find out himself, but he started to hear the yelling of a disgruntled voice.  
  
    "It's Thunder Striker! Ready the special rounds!"  
  
    The buck's laugh boomed in the background, but then there was a prolonged loud groan after the clacking of what Nick assumed was some kind of gunfire.  
  
    "...You okay now, sir?"  
  
    Nick started to see that the guards had formed a semi-circle around the area and were marching in his direction. Still curious, Nick zipped in front of their direction of movement, careful not to cause too much noise. He wanted to see where they were marching to. The forest got less and less dense, and the trees became more and more charred, and one of them was even actively on fire.  
  
    Finally, Nick saw a cottage in the distance. He walked over to it; it was basic, but large enough to perhaps house that deer. Nick made to the rear of the house. It was on a hill, and Zootopia itself could be seen in the background. Pausing for only one second to appreciate the view, he heard the marching of the guards in the distance behind him, his ears twitching. There was a ditch near the back of the house, and some rotted panels where one could see into it, if only barely. Nick decided to run in a circle and crouch, rolling into the ditch. He tried to hold the tension in his legs in case he was spotted.   
  
    After a minute or two, he could just make out the guards fanning out around the house, pointing in various directions with their firearms. Of particular note seemed to be a raccoon or a red panda, fully armored and with an almost comically large gun.   
  
    "Perimeter secured, sir," a bear guard claimed, saluting.   
  
    "Good, keep it that way!" The dry voice of the leader snapped. "I'm going inside, we've got Striker." He clicked his gauntlet, pointing in a direction for the guard to keep watch. The small mammal walked toward the front of the cottage. Nick could barely make out his voice. "Yeah, this is Rocket. I've got Striker. Shall I proceed as discussed? ...Right... got it."  
  
    Nick saw a glimpse the old deer's legs as he sat down in a chair. Several pairs of armored boots filled the room near him.  
  
    "I'm sorry," came Thunder Striker's voice. "It happened again. I'm so sorry."  
  
    "It's all right, Mr. Standler," "Rocket" replied. "Everything's okay now."  
  
    Standler... Nick thought hard. Was that...  _Theodore_ Standler? Nick recalled something about that name... was it the very first glorified ZED Enforcer? Nick blinked in disbelief, staying low.  
  
    "You remember anything, Mr. Standler?" Another guard.  
  
    "I don't know.. barely," Standler wheezed. "I think I got into a fight with some young mammal... a maned wolf maybe. I think he had some sort of powers... it's all just a blur. I hope I didn't hurt him."  
  
    "Okay you guys, BOLO for a canid," Rocket said through his radio, and he heard it coming from the bear's device. Nick was ready to spring away at the first sign he was spotted.  
  
    "I'm so exhausted... I just want this all to be over..." Standler moaned.  
  
    "...Yeah, I got you," Rocket's voice sounded firm, but somehow defeated. "Okay, is the coast clear, you guys? ...We gotta bring him in now."  
  
    After a few seconds of shuffling, Nick nearly gasped as the peephole he was using was obscured. His eyes adjusting, it appeared to be some heavily armored box of some kind, opaque on at least the side facing Nick.  
  
    Unfamiliar technological whirrs came from the box. He was assuming it was being opened.   
  
    "Okay, c'mon out, li'l guy," Rocket was heard to say.  
  
    Nick swallowed, fear creeping into his soul. What was about to happen?  
  
    "Hi there," a meek youthful voice, indeterminate gender.   
  
    "Hello, young one," Standler's voice; very tired sounding.  
  
    "You know what you're supposed to do," Rocket said. His voice was neutral, which only alarmed Nick further.  
  
    The small voice came back. "Yeah... I'm nervous... I've never had to do it 'for real' before."  
  
    "I know, kit..." Rocket sighed. "I know."  
  
    "I... dunno if I want to do it, sir," the voice trembled. "I mean, I read about him in class and everything. He's famous..."  
  
    "Please, young one," Standler replied. "I... I miss my family. I just want my suffering to end."  
  
    Nick's heart burned. They were going to euthanize the poor old buck! For a few agonizing seconds, nothing happened. Nick hesitated for those seconds, wondering what to do. He hesitated until-  
  
    An eerie, but peaceful song started.  
  
    Nick could only imagine that the voice was coming from whatever small mammal was introduced. It was such a relaxing song, and it didn't go on for too long before ending with a serene and ethereal tone.  
  
    "I... think I did it right," the voice trembled.  
  
    "I think you have too," Standler's voice came, chuckling. "I feel all the itchiness has gone. I feel totally at peace."  
  
    Nick did, too. He felt like all of his tensions had melted away.  
  
    "Thank you, young one," Standler said with warm, elderly gratitude. "I'll... be able to go and visit my family now."  
  
    "Heheh... I'm happy to hear that," the bashful voice returned. "Can I uh... visit you sometime?"  
  
    "You'll need to in about a year, anyway," Rocket's voice came. "If what the Commander said is accurate."  
  
    "Well, I'll certainly hope I'm around then, anyway," Standler chuckled.  
  
    "Don't joke like that, old mammal," Rocket said, his voice betraying a note of worry. "You're a livin' legend. Okay kit, we gotta get you packed up to go home."  
  
    "All right, g'bye, Mr. Standler!"   
  
    Nick stayed low in the ditch, perplexed by whatever had just happened. It'd seemed like the young mammal's angelic song had even opened up the heavens; all the dark clouds had moved away, as if driven off by the singing. Only a few last defiant grumbles of thunder were audible.  
  
    "Seems like the operation was a success, sir," Rocket was barely audible. "...Affirmative. I'm gonna send some of my mammals to look for some kind of canid, empowered maybe. Ey, you! You see anything in this direction? ...Yeah, poor sap probably got clocked into the middle of next week. We're gonna see if we can find the body. Okay, we're movin' out."  
  
    The guards started to disperse from around the cottage, moving to where the fight between Nick and Standler took place.  
  
    Nick cursed his cowardice and inactivity, but everything had seemingly worked out fine. He rose from the ditch after several minutes when he was sure the coast was clear. Zootopia was quite a distance away, and he was eager to get back home.  
  
    He took a leisurely jog forward, crouched, and then dashed forward.  
  
    "...Uh?" Nick blinked in disbelief as he'd only taken a short hop forward. He ran forward again, faster, and crouched harder. He felt none of the familiar tension in his legs, but he leaped forward anyway. It was just a regular leap, and he gained no supermammal distance. "What the...?"  
  
    Nick wandered forward, bewildered, ducking instinctively as he heard Brittany's fiery "broom" shriek through the sky. Nick hid behind what trees he could, staying out of sight. He looked guardedly back at her. She was flitting around, putting out fires, doing her duty.  
  
    Nick frowned and made a break for it, running as forward as fast as his legs would take him.  
  
    It was, very unusually, not very fast. Just about as fast as a normal fox could run.  
  
    "No, no no no..." He felt the unusual feeling of fatigue in his legs, and slowed after a few minutes. "No...! What's... what HAPPENED to me!?"  
  


* * *

  
    It felt like forever until Nick managed to find his way back into Zootopia proper. Night was beginning to fall, and he was exceedingly hungry. His powers hadn't suddenly flickered back, and he was starting to feel deep despair.  
  
    He knew he couldn't sleep. If that Appointed character was still looking for him, he reckoned he might not be as kind to him anymore what with the beating Nick gave him previously. Not that his blood would be a prize for the shady fox anymore, but of course, no one knew that but Nick.  
  
    He knew he couldn't go back to his place at Honey's. Of all the mammals to not know about Nick's predicament, she was perhaps even more dangerous. With Nick unsure if his healing factor was still working, he was even less enthusiastic than usual about getting shot by her.  
  
    He knew he couldn't go to his mother's house in the Meadowlands. Out of everything he didn't want to do, most of all he wouldn't think of putting his mother in any sort of danger. He wished he'd brought a phone with him, but he'd broken far too many of them before, and after that tussle with the old deer, his phone would probably have been crushed anyway.  
  
    Nick rubbed a paw on his suit. He felt hopeless and worried. Some mammals pointed at him in the street and murmured loudly.  
  
    "Is that the Hustler?" A young giraffe.  
    "Looks like him... maybe he's just cosplaying, honey..." Their parent.  
  
    Indeed, Nick's face had lost anything like his usual confidence. He wondered if he got that all from his powers, his reliance on knowing he could escape or overpower a foe in nearly any situation. Taken from him in one moment. Or several, if it was that eerie song.  
  
    Nick tried to think about that, but it ended up just frustrating and confusing him, and the growling and snarling of his stomach didn't help. The despondent fox wandered into an eatery he knew would still be open, feeling for his wallet within a pocket in his suit.  
  
    "Well, look at what the cat dragged in," a sour, grumpy voice greeted him from behind the counter. Dressed in a fast-food outfit was a small fennec fox with a dour face betraying his similar age to Nick.   
  
    "Finnick, hey," Nick wandered up to the counter, gesturing weakly. "Listen, I'm in a bit of trouble, and-"  
  
    " _You're_ in a bit a trouble? YOU?" Finnick scoffed loudly. "Oh, my bad, I thought you was on easy street now, what with your  _pardon_ and your _superpowers_. Now you can do whatever you want, like you always have!"  
  
    "Finnick, just- can I have a number 1 Bug Burga combo?" Nick muttered, the energy drained from his voice.  
  
    "Yeah, but you gotta pay for it like everyone else, bucko!" Finnick snarled. "I swear, the nerve of a mammal like you. Leavin' us NORMAL mammals to our devices cause we ain't USEFUL enough to you. Think I like bein' stuck here? I coulda made it in this city if we kept workin' together like before, but I guess I ain't the right species or a special snowflake like yourself!"  
  
    "Yeah."  
  
    Finnick growled. "HELL of a lotta nerve."  
  
    Nick offered him a twenty. "Keep the change, will ya?" His voice was empty.  
  
    The fennec's nasty expression weakened a bit. "Ey, what's the matter witchoo anyway?"  
  
    Nick didn't respond, silently gathering his food and eating alone. He staved off Finnick's looks, catching a glance from him out of the corner of his eye. Mostly, though, he was concerned about the outside. He kept peeking out of the window, expecting that blue fox to come launching through it at any time. It would be just his luck, with the day he was having.  
  
    Damn Honey for making him so paranoid.  _Damn_ her.  
  
    Nick was wandering near the outskirts of Savanna Central at around 2 A.M. He felt so sluggish; he wondered if his powers had previously even dulled his sense of fatigue. Food felt heavier in his stomach, his legs ached without end, and he felt like he could collapse at any time.   
  
    He couldn't go on. Near the edge of the water he looked out on the islands of the Muddy Swamp in the distance. He was far from home, far away from anything he knew. Yet, he couldn't shake the feeling that the assassin fox would find him at any time. His throat felt choked up; this was no way to live.  
  
    He sank to his knees and bowed his head, placing his hands to his sides.  
  
    "God, Celestials, or whoever's out there...  _whatever's_ out there..." Nick murmured. "Please don't let me die tonight. Not until I can... just... make things even with my mother. I know that sounds pathetic...  _God_ that sounds so pathetic." He let out a heaving breath. "Karma, if this is what you think I deserve, who am I to argue, huh? Got by on a life of the gray, and now that the slate's clean, my powers should be gone too, huh? Well, okay, if that's what you want..."  
  
    Nick swallowed with difficulty. Despite the humidity in the air, he felt cold and shivered. Any physical discomfort in his life he'd felt was nothing compared to this prolonged weakness of fatigue catching up to him. He ran his paws down his suit and his shaky breaths hitched.  
  
    It was that tracking beacon. He felt he still had it on his person.  
  
    Silently hoping that Skippel character had done her job, Nick pressed it, and waited.  
  
    It felt like an hour, though it could really have been only twenty minutes. The familiar "TCHAK" sounds of Judy's shockwaves traveled through the air. The bunny landed cleanly near Nick.  
  
    "Nick!  _There_ you are," Judy held her paws out. "We've been looking all over for you!"  
  
    "You have?" Nick barely turned his head to look at her.  
  
    "Nick, what's wrong? You look like heck!" Worry lined Judy's purple eyes, but Nick got the sense that it was there before she'd seen him.  
  
    "Something's... happened," Nick said, fatigue clouding his mind. "I just want to-"  
  
    "Listen, you've got to get to the ZED," Judy held her paws in front of her. "There's a situation, and not a good one. C'mon, I'll meet you there." She crouched down.  
  
    "No, NO!" Panic jumped out and bit Nick, and he waved his arms frantically. Honesty might be his only refuge now. "Judy... something's happened to my powers. I think I'm... 'normal'."  
  
    "What...?" Judy's face scrunched. "How's that possible? Does that happen to you sometimes?"  
  
    "Never," Nick murmured, wagging his head gently.  
  
    "Um... well..." Judy looked around, baffled, "well we gotta get you to the ZED anyhow. I'll call a vehicle for you, okay?" She crouched down again.  
  
    "Judy...!" Nick shouted, interrupting her escape again. "Could you... could you call it right here?"  
  
    "...I think so? Why?" Judy blinked.  
  
    "Just... I'm worried, a little bit," Nick felt the degree of his blatant honesty searing him. "About this whole thing."  
  
    "Oh, sure, sure..." Judy said, concerned at Nick's unusual tone. She touched a device near her ear. "It's Enforcer Hopps. Listen, could you send a mid-size vehicle over to pick up Mr. Wilde and I? ...There are extenuating circumstances."  
  


* * *

  
    Nick got out of the long black car that was admitted onto the ZED premises. The place seemed to be in a kind of "ordered chaos". Mammals of all shapes, sizes, and levels of armor were running around, taking orders, and patrolling.   
  
    "The heck is going on here?" Nick mused, scratching his head. Judy motioned for him to follow her past the statue of- oh, that's right,  _that_ was the statue of Theodore Standler in his prime, the one in the middle of the ZED courtyard. Shaking his head of the thought of fighting the old deer, he re-gathered his wits. "It seems crazier here than when I dive bombed in early yesterday."  
  
    "It  _is_ crazier," Judy nodded tersely, walking briskly. "It's been a very... packed day. We had to deliver an announcement about a change in leadership, there was an operation, and then, an attack."  
  
    "An attack, by whom?" Nick blinked. "Here at the ZED?"  
  
    "No no, it was out in Zootopia," Judy frowned, leading him into the ZED's lobby. "Listen, I can explain it all later. We have to get you underground."  
  
    "Me? Why?" Nick looked confused, then sneered. "Oh, was it that Appointed guy? The blue fox?"  
  
    Judy barely nodded, as if doing so would be a betrayal. "C'mon, Nick, let's go."  
  
    "Mr. Wilde," Bogo met the two near the elevator.  
  
    "We're going down to testing facility two," Judy nodded at Bogo.  
  
    "Yes, as am I," Bogo said, joining them on the elevator. Judy punched the button and the elevator started to descend.  
  
    Caught in the whirlwind of activity, Nick finally caught the presence of mind to take action. He reached out and slammed the "emergency stop" button on the elevator. Bogo caught his arm.  
  
    "What do you think you're doing, fox?" The large buffalo asked Nick.  
  
    "I'm going to be getting some answers, _Chief_ ," Nick said with a voice bathed in both anger and worry. "And before you two abduct me to wherever the heck testing facility we're going, I want them."  
  
    "Wait, how did he-" Judy said, then stopped herself. "We haven't released that statement yet, have we?"  
  
    "Not yet," Bogo grimaced, "things have been a bit too hectic."  
  
    "How did I what? What the heck is going on?" Nick let out a snarl, quite unlike him, feeling desperate and worried.  
  
    "Wilde has often called me 'Chief' to disparage me," Bogo said lowly, "it happens to be accurate now. I stepped down as the Commander, and will now serve as Chief Advisor."  
  
    "What?" Nick blinked.  
  
    "Mostly a political move," Bogo explained. "We're hoping that appointing a predator as the Commander will discredit Mayor Bellwether's rhetoric for a little while."  
  
    "A predator?" Nick echoed. "Skye?"  
  
    "Oh no, she doesn't have the leadership qualities," Bogo shook his head. "It will be Commander Fangmeyer."  
  
    "I... okay then," Nick shook his head. "Jeez, just when I thought I was making progress with you, you defer to that hardass."  
  
    Bogo opened his eyes wide and gingerly pointed at him. "Watch your tone around her, fox." The pupils and irises vanished from his eyes. His jaw dropped slightly. "...Mr. Wilde, what happened to your powers?"  
  
    "Was hoping _you_ could answer me that, Chief," Nick said, still framing the "chief" as a pejorative. "All I know is something about an operation you guys went on, with a raccoon or red panda or something on the lead."  
  
    Bogo's eyes went wide. "Wilde, you idiot! You went over to the lightning storm!?"  
  
    Judy's eyes spoke confusion. "You said everyone with powers was to stay away from there, right?"  
  
    Nick pointed at Bogo. "You guys have some sort... power- _removing_ Empowered?"  
  
    Judy followed Nick's gaze, looking terrified at this prospect.  
  
    "Not removing... dampening," Bogo spoke through his teeth. "And the fact that you know that is reason for us to imprison you, so watch your mouth. No one is supposed to know about- about that mammal."   
  
    Judy let in a shallow gasp. "You depowered Mr. Standler?"  
  
    "His powers were causing him to suffer," Bogo frowned. "Commander Fangmeyer didn't want to do it, so I decided to perform the operation as my last act of being in command. She thought it would be too risky to utilize 'that mammal', and it seems like she was right..."  
  
    "I mean, can you reverse it?" Nick held his arms out wide, desperate. "What can you do?"  
  
    "I can do nothing," Bogo shook his head. "It will wear off, in time. The time depends on a variety of factors. Without your powers active, I can't offer you any sort of calculation."  
  
    "Great, just... _great_..." Nick stared at the wall.  
  
    "I guess that means we don't have to keep him here...?" Judy frowned, looking at the fox sadly.   
  
    "The Appointed still thinks he has powers; he's in danger," Bogo shook his head.   
  
    "So, you guys turned around on that pretty quick," Nick sneered. "Decided to believe me after all?"  
  
    "We didn't have to believe you," Bogo said, pressing the button to resume the elevator. Nick felt a sinking feeling of terror as he said those words and the doors opened.  
  
    In the testing facility, the two entered a control room. Nick saw what he assumed was Rocket, a raccoon with his helmet off, wearing body armor. He was speaking to the newly-appointed Commander Fangmeyer. To the right was Skye, floating about, looking grim. To the left he saw a couple of middle-aged foxes looking worriedly into the test chamber, and to their right was Brittany. Nick's eyes widened in alarm; the right sleeve on her outfit was missing, and a broad bandage was wrapped around her arm.  
  
    "The heck is going on... here...?" Nick stepped forward and looked into the test chamber. It had some basic boxes and objects in them, but they all were floating at random heights around the room. In the middle of the room was a young red fox that Nick hadn't seen before. There were bandages wrapped around her midsection, and she looked to be in at least mild pain.  
  
    "Nick Wilde," Commander Fangmeyer broke his attention to look at her. She turned to Rocket. "Is everything set up?"  
  
    "Defensive perimeter is set up, Commander," Rocket saluted.   
  
    "If you see the blue fox, open fire at once," the tigress said, paws behind her back.  
  
    "You got it," Rocket said, and made for the vacated elevator.  
  
    "So, you're here," Fangmeyer went on, looking over Nick. "Undamaged, I suppose?"  
  
    "I'm guessing your interest in _that_ has purely to do with whatever is going on _here_ ," Nick walked past her towards the family of foxes, looking worriedly in the room. "What happened?"  
  
    "Nick...!" Brittany looked over at Nick, her eyes unsteady and glassy. "Ugh, it was horrible... I'd gone out to dinner with my family and on the way out, we were jumped by this... blue fox guy. He called himself the Appointed, and he said he'd come to collect samples."  
  
    "Damnit," Nick said tersely.  
  
    "I thank the Celestials that my girls were not seriously hurt..." their mother said. "But... I don't know what to do now, just look at poor Kinsey..."  
  
    Nick directed his attention to inside the chamber, where there were a bunch of objects floating about. A smaller, quite young fox was in the middle, looking frightened and confused.  
  
    "Okay, now, see if you can 'reach out' with your 'mind's hand' and take hold of that box right there," came another voice. Nick turned around; it was a white arctic hare.   
  
    "Ll-like this?" Came the timid voice over the speaker. She gently motioned forward with her hand, and the box suddenly jerked in midair. "Nyuh!" Flinching in alarm, Kinsey wiggled her paw, and the box violently smashed into the walls, then ceiling, then came to rest in pieces on the floor. The pieces then slowly started to rise as well.  
  
    "Whoa, whoa, easy," said the arctic hare, gritting her teeth. "Don't panic. Everything will be fine."  
  
    Kinsey shivered and nodded. She held her arms around her, looking left and right worriedly.  
  
    "It's a power spike," Bogo frowned. "A dangerous combination of developments of puberty and a response to the attack on her."  
  
    "But it will pass, right...?" Kinsey and Brittany's father looked hopelessly at the buffalo.  
  
    "Yes... she will just need to be kept safe for a day or so, until we can calm her," Bogo nodded, huffing unsteadily.  
  
    "No Empowered red fox is to go anywhere off of the ZED guarded premises while the Appointed is still at large," Commander Fangmeyer declared, stepping forward. "Just the... the mere fact that he knows how to absorb other foxes' powers is a terrible danger. Bogo has confirmed that he _did_ absorb the powers of both Kinsey and Brittany."  
  
    Nick looked uneasily into the testing chamber. "Well that's not good... to say the least."  
  
    "I wish I'd have finished him off," Brittany sneered. "But I was too afraid of hurting my family. My anger and hatred conflicted with each other, when it mattered most..."  
  
    Her mother came up behind her to rub her shoulders.  
  
    "How'd you get away, Brittany?" Nick wondered.  
  
    Brittany nodded at Kinsey. "When she was hurt, she panicked and her power flared up. The blue fox got telekinetically flung across the street and he made his escape after that. I hope it hurt." The vixen balled her fists, which she then shook because they frosted up a bit.  
  
    "Well, this is a mess," Nick frowned. He turned to Fangmeyer. "If only you'd had some sort of warning."  
  
    "Don't try me, Wilde," Fangmeyer folded her arms. "The ZED has had a busy few days what with the mayor and now _this_."  
  
    "How's this guy know about the fox power thing, anyway?" Nick was frustrated and annoyed. "I mean it's not like you can have a red fox just  _eat_ the blood of another and get the powers, right?"  
  
    "Correct, it must be via injection," Bogo mused. "Likely 'the Appointed' just was able to place trace amounts of Kinsey and Brittany's blood inside himself, perhaps just by scratching with a nail used to injure them."  
  
    "And how did he learn how to do that?" Nick sneered. "If that's 'secret ZED information'? Some secret! How's he even know what foxes to target? Looks mighty _suspect_ to me."  
  
    Fangmeyer growled, getting up to tower over Nick. "First of all, I _don't appreciate_ that implication. Second of all, he's too young. Thirdly, what makes you think we'd set some deranged fox on our own!?"  
  
    "I dunno, I'm not putting it past you guys to keep some damning secrets," Nick glared at her, though his anger was quickly eroding due to his situation. "But, come to think of it, I think I've had enough of this for today."  
  
    "You're not  _going_ anywhere, 'Hustler'," Fangmeyer enunciated carefully. "You're a prime target for him, and so is she." She pointed at Skye, who was looking on with concern for Kinsey's plight, but looked back at hearing this.   
  
    "He's not gonna get any juice from me, Krissie Cat," Nick said without double-checking himself, "why don't you just ask Bogo about that?"  
  
    Fangmeyer stopped before a roar exploded from her mouth, then looked at Bogo. "What does he mean?"  
  
    "His powers have been... surpressed," Bogo looked away.  
  
    "What!? How?" Fangmeyer turned to Nick. "HOW?"  
  
    "Something something operation something something," Nick said. "Don't pretend you don't know."  
  
    Judy looked warily at Fangmeyer, who grit her teeth.  
  
    "I told you it was too dangerous to use 'him'," Fangmeyer sneered at Bogo. "Now this plebeian fox has knowledge of him."  
  
    "Believe me, I'm still pretty much in the dark about this whole thing, _thanks_ ," Nick waved a paw.  
  
    "Well, it won't happen again with you at the helm, now will it?" Bogo almost smirked. "I was not going to let Mr. Standler suffer any longer. It was a risk, yes, but I did it in the interest of helping our mammals."  
  
    Fangmeyer mouthed a curse, then violently swiped her head. "No, no, this is fine."  
  
    Skye floated up to be near Nick. "I could always... give him a spot of my blood, huh?" She smiled weakly. "I mean, it'd be only fair, after what he did for me."  
  
    " _No_ ," Fangmeyer retorted quickly. "No, you will not do that. The fewer targets that maniac has to collect blood from, the better."  
  
    "So it would be just dandy if I was run through by this madmammal, huh?" Nick folded his arms.  
  
    Fangmeyer swiveled over to Nick, but to his surprise, flashed a grin, almost a manic one. She chuckled. "Dear Celestial Drive, you sure are testing me. Well, even in a crisis, let me prove myself level-headed. Nick Wilde, if you wish, you can remain here in hiding from the Appointed until he's dealt with."  
  
    Nick blinked at the offer, then looked on at Kinsey's family looking worriedly at her. His heart burned. He longed to see his mother, to talk to her, even embrace her. Perhaps he could somehow get to her, tell her to get out of town for now until this all blew over. But he felt like it would be such a risk even to approach her without his powers to defend himself and-  
  
    "Actually, I think I'd rather just go home," Nick muttered quietly, betraying himself.  
  
    "Then be my guest," Fangmeyer motioned to the elevator with strained patience.  
  
    Nick's eyes moved toward Judy, and they were full of concern and worry. He looked away and headed toward the elevator after a long hesitation.  
  
    "Bye, Nick," Skye waved blankly.  
  
    Judy's eyes and ears lit up with the unspoken words Nick had given her. "I can- I can take him home," Judy looked up at Fangmeyer. "Ma'am, please allow me to escort him home. Just in case he's beset by the Appointed."  
  
    "...Fine, you may do that," Fangmeyer looked between the two. "You may do that."  
  
    Judy gave an encouraging, small smile to Nick as she joined him in the elevator.  
  
    Before the doors shut, Fangmeyer pointed at Judy.  
  
    "If you see the Appointed, you are to incapacitate him to the best of your ability," she gave a pointed look to Nick, knowing of the two's extended combative history. "Failing that... kill him."


	5. A Moment of Your Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A good time as any to mention J_Shute_Norway's fic "Familiar Fire: The Embers of the Past. It's an unofficial sequel to Familiar Fire that focuses more on Brittany and her trying to cope with the issues from the end of that story.
> 
> Give it a read if you're interested! You can find it [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14945892/chapters/34630395)

    "Woohoo!"  
    "Aaaaagh!"  
  
    The enormous armored ZED cruiser roared over a hill and landed heavily on the road, testing the suspension of the vehicle. It picked up speed and continued to race through the late night streets of Zootopia.  
  
    "Red light! RED LIGHT!" Nick shrieked.  
  
    The car screeched to a halt, causing Nick and Judy to jerk forward and then back in their seats.  
  
    "I think I'm gonna be sick," Nick groaned, rubbing at his belly.  
  
    "This is so much fun!" Judy drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, gripping it adventurously. "I usually never get to drive any of the ZED vehicles."  
  
    "Can't imagine why!" Nick quipped back, panting.  
  
    "Mostly cause I have no reason to, when I can just fly everywhere," Judy giggled. "Ooh, green light!"  
  
    "Tone it down a bit!" Nick said, gripping anywhere on the vehicle he could with his claws.  
  
    "Sorry, sorry," Judy reduced her speed by a good bit. "It's just so thrilling, you know?"  
  
    "Well yes, maybe," Nick gasped, "but what you or I call a 'thrill' I now call 'fearing for my life'."  
  
    "Right... ri-"  
  
    "Plus I'm afraid of you putting a hole through the pedals, with how hard you're jamming them," the fox's voice turned scolding as he gathered his wits.  
  
    "Oh, there's no danger of that," the bunny claimed lightly, "I have to tense up some particular muscles in my legs to make the blasts."  
  
    "Tension, huh...?" Nick started to deflate, staring out a window.  
  
    Judy observed the fox's increasingly somber look and her ears fell; she focused on driving more carefully. Several silent moments passed between the two as they headed to the Meadowlands.  
  
    "So this Appointed guy," Nick finally broke the silence. "You haven't caught him yet?"  
  
    "The attacks basically just happened, Nick," Judy said. "But so far, no."  
  
    "I hope the kit doesn't have some sort of radar-busting power, to hide from the Chief," Nick folded his paws.  
  
    "I wouldn't  _think_ so," Judy frowned. "But so far, he's staying out of range of Comman- er, Chief Advisor Bogo's radar."  
  
    "Can't you just, uh..." Nick rifled through his own mental worries of how he could be caught for all of those years. "Parade him around town in a vehicle? Increase his range that way?"  
  
    "Uh uh," Judy shook her head, "doesn't work like that. Moving his head too much in any direction while he's concentrating completely disrupts his concentration and spacial awareness. In short, he cannot use his power while on the move. And given how long he has to concentrate sometimes to make his radar a decent size, it's usually not feasible to make outings like that specifically to take gambles on if he can find a particular mammal. Maybe it will be now that he's not the leader."  
  
    "Especially with how dangerous this kit is becoming," Nick kept his gaze out the window, finding that it was helping with the odd feeling in his stomach. "I mean... attacking a family, a _kit_."  
  
    "At least they're all right... so to speak," Judy's said cautiously.  
  
    "Boy, you could see the bright side of a train wreck," Nick scoffed derisively. "He  _slashed_ a _kit_."  
  
    "Just saying it could be worse..." Judy added meekly.  
  
    "It could always be worse," Nick muttered. "I've experienced that personally."  
  
    "I'm so sorry you lost your powers, Nick," Judy sighed, stopping at another red light and glancing at him.  
  
    "Yeah, now I definitely couldn't put up a fight against you," Nick huffed, cracking the barest smile.  
  
    "Oh, is that your primary concern?" Judy tried not to laugh in response. "Don't worry, I don't see any reason for us to fight. ...Like I said, you're a good mammal, powers or not."  
  
    Nick rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah..."  
  
    "I mean it, you coming in to help fight Jack Savage," Judy shook her head. "You didn't have to do that. You risked your life for us. For me, Brittany, even Bogo and Commander Fangmeyer."  
  
    "It was a pretty terrifying battle," Nick nodded. "But it was worth it to hear you scream out that attack name like you were some sort of cartoon character." He began to chuckle.  
  
    "What?" Judy returned a giggle. "You weren't even at the fight yet."  
  
    "I was getting there," Nick smirked, "waiting for the moment to strike. Plus you yelled loud enough to be heard outside the compound." He put on a determined sneer in his muzzle. "GEYSER SPIRAL!"  
  
    "It was just 'geyser kick'," Judy said sheepishly. "Though... that _does_ sound pretty cool..."  
  
    "Oh good Lord," Nick chuckled. They entered the Meadowlands, full of rolling hills and grassy plains. "Oh, first left here."  
  
    "Gotcha," Judy said. They fell into quiet as they made their way to Nick's mother's house.  
  


* * *

  
    Nick felt slight pain in his ankles from dropping down to the ground. The ZED cruiser was quite a ways up and the driveway was concrete.  
  
    "Mn..." Nick grunted, dusting himself off while Judy lightly dropped to the ground on the other side of the cruiser. He walked around the side of the van, looking down the street. "And you're sure we weren't followed."  
  
    "As sure as I can be," Judy sounded slightly exasperated with a flip of her paws, following his gaze down the street before turning back to the unassuming house before them. "If you want, I can stay here and stand guard...?"  
  
    "It's just- I don't know..." Nick frowned, feeling a growing unease in the pit of his stomach. "I've tried to prepare myself for this moment for a long time now, but I never feel like I'm there, and the more I put it off, the worse it got."  
  
    "Er, is your mother mean?" Judy shrugged.  
  
    "Not particularly."  
  
    "Then what are you waiting for?" She pumped her arm, voice bright. "Go rip off that bandage!"  
  
    "Thanks for the support," Nick said sarcastically, though he did feel a slight bit of relief from having a powerful mammal like that bunny at his side. He walked up and rang the doorbell, looking back to a double thumbs-up from Judy. "Here goes. Hope she's up."  
  
    The door opened to Nick's mother, a middle-aged vixen who definitely looked it. She seemed a bit prematurely aged from stress, and her eyes read shock as she saw Nick's face.  
  
    "Nicky... finally...!" Her eyes started to well up.  
  
    "Hey, Mom..." Nick rubbed behind his head.  
  
    "I'm so sorry, Nick," his mother blurted, grabbing hold of him tightly. "I'm so sorry for doubting you." She sniffled. "I've been trying to find you ever ss-since they pardoned you, but you've been so scarce."  
  
    "Sorry, Mom," he huffed, trying not to get choked up himself. "Sorry. It's just... it's been complicated. A lot's happened."  
  
    "Well, will you please come in?" Nick's mother looked at her son desperately.  
  
    "Yeah, sure-"  
  
    "And your bunny friend too?" Mrs. Wilde looked past Nick to the bunny and her black uniform. She waved with a meek smile. "Oh goodness, she's with the ZED, isn't she? Are you in trouble again?"  
  
    "Like I said... it's complicated," Nick sighed.  
  
    Nick and Judy ended up on one of his mother's couches, each being offered a cup of coffee despite the time. Nick started to doll up his coffee with some sugar packets while Judy drank it straight.  
  
    "Mm, thank you, Mrs. Wilde," Judy smiled, then looked to the fidgety fox to her side. "Nick, if you pour any more sugar into that, the coffee's gonna spill out."  
  
    "Oh, I like her," Mrs. Wilde smirked.  
  
    "Mm-hm," Nick said distractedly, sipping from his coffee.  
  
    "So, will you elaborate on what kind of trouble you're in this time...?" Nick's mother tried to sound gentle and non-accusatory.  
  
    "Well, I lost my powers," Nick said evenly. "I'm just a normal mammal now."  
  
    "Really?" Shock sprang into his mother's face. "That can happen?"  
  
    Nick darted his eyes over to Judy.  
  
    "Uh-apparently so, ma'am," Judy nodded quickly.  
  
    "And, with no powers, I'm defenseless against an up-and-coming supervillain," Nick folded one arm across to his other while sipping coffee with the other paw. "This blue fox that goes by 'The Appointed'."  
  
    "Are they after you?" Nicks mom gasped. "Why?"  
  
    "My blood, apparently powers are coded into DNA," he shrugged. "I mean, that would make sense, but fox-" Nick interrupted himself, wondering how much he should reveal.  
  
    "So are they something like... a vampire...?" Mrs. Wilde put her hand to her mouth.  
  
    "Something like that," Judy nodded. "But don't worry, the ZED is working as hard as it can to keep everyone safe from this threat."  
  
    "I heard there was some turmoil in your ranks over the news," Mrs. Wilde looked doubtful.  
  
    "Just political stuff," Judy shook her head. "We're perfectly fine; ready and willing to serve."  
  
    Mrs. Wilde nodded diagonally.  
  
    "All that said, do you think you could leave the city for awhile?" Nick said abruptly, surprising both females. "The Appointed has, so far, only targeted red foxes."  
  
    "With powers," Judy added. "Red foxes with powers. No mention of him going after-"  
  
    "Just the same... I..." Nick looked troubled, and his eyes met the floor. "I just want you to stay safe, Mom. I don't want any bratty teenage wannabe super villain thinking they can use my loved ones for leverage."  
  
    "I... I'll see what I can do, Nicholas," Mrs. Wilde flinched. "This is so sudden. ...I do have a friend in the Triburrows that I could visit, maybe I could make a week of it with her...?"  
  
    "We will definitely bring the Appointed to justice soon," Judy pumped her arm.  
  
    Mrs. Wilde's face went blank. "Like you brought my Nicholas to 'justice' 'soon'? How long of a timetable should I be looking at here? Ten years, perhaps?"  
  
    "Ma'am, I..." Judy flashed her teeth in apprehension. "I was just following orders. Nick was wanted, and I fought him, several times. I would say that I know him pretty well now, and I've always expected that deep down, he's a very good mammal, and I-"  
  
    "I suppose we've all made some judgemental errors here," Mrs. Wilde said in a low hiss. "But, as long is my son is willing to forgive me, I suppose I can forgive  _you_ for making his life hell."  
  
    "Now, uh, to be fair," Nick pointed a finger half-up. "I did- I er, I made the process harder than it could have been. And my battles with Judy here were always, uh... well I wouldn't say 'enjoyable', but..."  
  
    "And sometimes the right thing to do isn't just to 'follow orders', young lady," Mrs. Wilde folded her arms and stared straight at Judy. "...But, that said, I will look into leaving Zootopia for a time if it will make you feel better, Nicholas. I suppose it's the least I could do after disbelieving you for so long."  
  
    "Awkward..." Judy whispered.  
  
    "And with that, I think we should go," Nick slapped his lap and stood up.  
  
    "Already, Nick?" Mrs. Wilde frowned. "I feel like you just got here."  
  
    "Well, yes, the longer we stay, the bigger the risk, and all that," Nick shrugged. "I battled with coming here at all, what with that maniac on the loose."  
  
    "I understand, son..." the older vixen didn't look happy, but she nodded briefly. "Thank you for coming to see me at all. And will you please get a smart phone and actually keep in touch?"  
  
    "Yeah, I'll- I'll see what I can do there," Nick said. His mother rushed over to hug him tight.  
  
    "I'll do everything I can to keep your son safe," Judy offered, more bravely than she expected. "You have my word."  
  
    "We'll see about that, won't we?" Mrs. Wilde muttered.  
  


* * *

  
    The front door shut softly behind them, leaving Nick and Judy standing still on the porch.  
  
    "Shoo... maybe I  _should_ have just stood guard," Judy folded her arms tightly. "I felt powerless under that withering glare."  
  
    "Well, to my knowledge, she doesn't actually have super powers, so you're safe," Nick huffed.  
  
    "Still, I can see where you got some of your..." Judy trailed off.  
  
    "My what?" Nick smirked wryly, holding his arms out. "My what? My bitterness? My skepticism? My paranoia?"  
  
    "Never mind," Judy brushed a paw through her ears.  
  
    "Super powers, all this crap is about super powers," Nick slashed his paw as he took a step forward. "If I wasn't being stalked by that blue fox, I would feel almost glad to be away from them for awhile. Just- what does he think he's doing? Trying to accrue powers for himself in some sort of adolescent fantasy?"  
  
    "I wish I knew," Judy murmured, slowly starting to walk to the cruiser. "He's not killing his victims... at least not so far. But we haven't heard him making any other moves. Surely he has some sort of goal in mind."  
  
    "And attacking only the two girls... the ones with powers," Nick mused. " _How_? How did he know about them having powers? Even the little girl, what was her name? I didn't even know she existed, much less had powers."  
  
    "She wasn't a ZED student," Judy shook her head. "So she wouldn't be on our roster. ...Maybe under some sort of notes."  
  
    Nick gave her a pointed gaze. "Can you see why I'm a little skeptical that your little club is out for the 'greater good'? How could this guy know what red foxes to specifically target without having some sort of access to classified information? I mean, at least I'd  _hope_ a roster of super-powered foxes would be classified."  
  
    "It would be, but I... I really don't like you insinuating what you're insinuating," Judy frowned up at him. "I don't expect the ZED would keep something like The Appointed-"  
  
    "What, secret?" Nick sneered. He wiggled his finger in Judy's face. "You didn't even know they had a mammal that could dampen the powers of other mammals, did you? Huh!?"  
  
    "And what if I didn't?" Judy brushed Nick's paw aside, getting frustrated. She sneered. "Honestly, what difference does it make?"  
  
    "The ZED has a history of poor decision making," Nick said flatly.  
  
    "So what, you think we just have bred this weird blue fox for some kind of super-soldier program!?" Judy threw up her hands. "Last time I checked, our only fox super-soldier was Skye, and as you know we've had to bench her to keep the Appointed away from her. _So_ , I would  _appreciate_ it if you didn't just  _assume_ that the ZED was out to get everyone!"  
  
    "Well, I guess we'll see what we see, then," Nick shrugged, his voice suddenly becoming light.  
  
    "Don't you believe that there are some good mammals at the ZED, Nick? Ones you can trust?" Judy's voice pinched a bit. "At least... me?"  
  
    Nick sighed, looking down. "I know that you in particular would do anything to pursue what you think is right. No matter what it was that you  _thought_ was right."  
  
    "Yeah, and- so..." Judy threw her arms out. "What I think is right is protecting the red foxes of this city from that evil blue fox. What do you say to that?"  
  
    Both mammals were silent for a few minutes.  
  
    "...I'm tired," Nick shook his head. "Should probably shack up somewhere."  
  
    "Want to go back to the ZED?" Judy jerked her paw at the cruiser.  
  
    "No, I don't want to feel like I'm in a prison," Nick huffed. "I'll just go to some random hotel. Still got a few bucks left from you guys."  
  
    "I expect you could expect more, as long as you need it," Judy nodded.  
  
    "Not your decision to make, is it?" Nick sucked at his teeth.  
  
    "But what is my decision..." Judy grabbed his wrist. "Is that if you're ever in trouble, you activate that beacon and I promise I will rush to your side and defend you with all of my strength."  
  
    Nick took in a shallow breath. "Th-thank you, Judy. Er, Buster Bunny."  
  
    "And here I was thinking we'd moved past that," Judy smirked wryly. "C'mon, let me give you a lift to a hotel."  
  
    Nick shook his head and rubbed his temples. "If you promise to obey the speed limit."  
  


* * *

  
    "Urgh..." Nick bounced around in the rickety van.  
  
    It had been three weeks since the Appointed's attack on the Voxens. Not a single news item had been heard about him since. Nick was trying to stay on edge, but felt himself growing more at ease. He'd even started to entertain other avenues of getting some extra money.  
  
    "S'matter, Nick?" Finnick asked grouchily from the driver's seat. "My van not agreeing with you?"  
  
    "The suspension feels shot," Nick groaned, rubbing his stomach. "And I feel a little carsick..."  
  
    "Just like a kit," Finnick scoffed. "Look out the window."  
  
    "Mm," the bigger fox replied, doing such. By doing so, his thoughts tended to wander back to the Appointed. What was he doing, and why? For who? Himself? He shook his head briefly. "So, where to next?"  
  
    "Next, we gotta go to Tundratown," Finick recited. "We freeze the Pawpsicle juice there into little molds, we sell it at quitting time near the Lemming Bros., then we see if we can offload the sticks in Little Rodentia. It's a nice bit of profit." The fennec flashed his teeth.  
  
    "Got this friend at the ZED," Nick continued to stare out the window. "She could probably freeze them in a snap." He snapped his fingers to punctuate the last word.  
  
    "Yeah, well," Finnick's voice got both angrier and more distant, "us  _normal_ mammals gotta make do with natural law."  
  
    "And you're putting me in that fold now?" Nick dared to look at him, feeling a wave of nausea. "I wish you wouldn't make it an 'us vs them' thing."  
  
    "Well, ain't it?" Finnick snarled his lip. "The Empowered are gonna run the whole show before long. And from what you told me about this Appointed tailhole, things are only gonna get worse. This power struggle."  
  
    "Red foxes are a special case, Finnick," Nick shook his head. "Most mammals that have powers don't have anything worth writing home about. It's just the most powerful mammals that get to work as ZED Enforcers."  
  
    "Or super-criminals," Finnick sneered a smile.  
  
    "Yeah, well all that's over for me now," Nick took a breath to steady his stomach after a bounce sent it mewling to his brain that he probably would feel better if he just threw up. "I won't miss it, having to run from anyone official."  
  
    "Guess it wasn't easy?" Finnick sucked his teeth. "You sure made it  _look_ easy."  
  
    "Oh, the crimes were easy," Nick had to chuckle bitterly, "it was staying ahead of everyone else looking to get me that was hard. This Pawpsicle stuff seems like child's play."  
  
    "What, you think I got no cred?" Finnick rolled his eyes. "It's extra money, dog. I gotta pad out my wallet somehow. Flippin' bug burgas ain't gonna do it."  
  
    "No, believe me, I want to take it easy," Nick grumbled, and hiccuped. "Now, could you pull over? I think my lunch wants out."  
  
    "You got the weakest stomach I've ever seen, Wilde," Finnick started to oblige.  
  
    "Didn't used to be-" Nick said, before his mouth started filling up. He quickly and awkwardly exited the van.  
  


* * *

  
    "And a hundred bucks for you," Finnick counted out the money, handing Nick his share. "Not bad for a day's hustle, huh?"  
  
    "Not at all, and it's not even illegal," Nick smiled, pocketing the money. "I could eat well tonight."  
  
    "Well, I mean, it's kinda like tax evasion, but who the hell cares about that?" Finnick chuckled.  
  
    "Right? This is small time stuff," Nick laughed. "Catch you tomorrow?"  
  
    Finnick's brow furrowed, holding up his paws. "You'll catch these claws if you make another short joke."  
  
    "Whoa, easy there, slugger," Nick held up his own paws in defense. "You and I both know I can't beat you in a fight right now."  
  
    Finnick smirked. "Yeah, that's right. You keep thinkin' that way." He slapped the door of his van and drove off.  
  
    Nick walked down the street, his paws in his pockets. He wondered where he should eat to celebrate a job well done. Zootopia was a nice place when it came to culinary delights; mammals of all tastes could enjoy something about it.  
  
    As the fox rounded the corner, he started to hear screaming and saw mammals of various sizes stampeding past him.  
  
    "Oh no," Nick sniffed the air. Smoke and fire. Against his initial instinct, he started to brush past the mammals running past him, and he ran towards the source of the fleeing.  
  
    It was a restaurant that was on fire. A doughnut place, of all things. Nick tried to keep to the shadows, looking around for anyone else  _not_ running from the fire.  
  
    Could it be that the Appointed had figured out how to use his powers he stole from the Voxen sisters, and that this building was his first victim?  
  
    Or was it just some grease fire that got out of control?  
  
    Nick hated that his thoughts always jumped to that damned blue fox. If it was him, he needed to leave, and _right then_.  
  
    He paused, though when he heard and saw Brittany swoop in on her rocket-rod contraption and land near the doughnut store.  
  
    "Everyone back! Stay calm!" Brittany bellowed. "I'm Brittany Voxen of the ZED-A!" Wasting no more time, she raised her rod toward the source of the fire and it eagerly started swirling around her and her rod. The flames gathered to a central location, and Brittany closed her eyes to will them away. Gazing at it, Nick saw that she appeared to be having a little trouble containing the blaze, but as she mastered her breathing, the fire was completely put out, replaced by a burst of wintry air that expanded in all directions. Nick felt a pleasant little shiver, then started to make his way over to Brittany.  
  
    "Nice job, Sorceress," Nick smirked. "You're gonna put the ZFD out of jobs."  
  
    "Oh, Nick, hey," Brittany waved, weakly smiling. "Yeah just... just doing my work."  
  
    "You think you should be out and about now?" Nick narrowed an eye, leaning down toward her.  
  
    "Don't patronize me," the young fox rolled her eyes away from Nick. "That blue guy has my powers, not like he could take them again."  
  
    "I just meant... are you in the right mental state for it?" Nick pointed to her paws, which were trembling a little. Brittany folded them and quickly looked aloof in response.  
  
    "Gh... it helps keep my mind off things, that's all. Commander Fangmeyer said that the quickest road to recovery is getting back into your swing of things."  
  
    "Is your sister okay?" Nick winced.  
  
    "She's getting better," Brittany looked up at Nick with her warm brown eyes, "but she's not out of the woods yet. Her power is still spiking. But she's figuring out how to control it."  
  
    "Is it an emotional thing, like your powers?" The bigger fox wondered.  
  
    Brittany shook her head. "No, in fact, it's kind of hard to describe. It's like, the more she thinks about it, the less control over her powers she has. It's kind of like in her subconscious. In fact, she once reached for her drink and the glass just kind of swooped into her paw. She has to act without thinking, if that makes any sense."  
  
    "I guess," Nick shook his head. "I'm more concerned with the safety of you guys. Y'know, all things considered."  
  
    "And you say you're not a good guy," Brittany rolled her eyes, wiggling her rod, which collapsed into a wand. A ZFD firetruck pulled up. "Sorry guys, got this one too!" They made grumbles and nods and assessed the situation with some of their personnel as the two foxes continued to talk.  
  
    "Lots of arson lately?" Nick inquired suspiciously.  
  
    "No, it's not what you're thinking," Brittany shook her head, sighing. "Just seems like honest accidents. The blue creep still probably doesn't know how to use my powers yet. I mean, it took me a while."  
  
    "I just can't believe you haven't  _found_ him yet," Nick bared his teeth slightly, looking off into the sunset sky. "With how dangerous he seems."  
  
    "He hasn't made any moves," Brittany looked equally annoyed. "Not sure what he's waiting for. We even- Chief Advisor Bogo even caught his energy signature once before it went off the map, but when our team pursued, he wasn't there. It's like... damn, how hard is a blue fox to find, anyway?"  
  
    "Language, young lady," Nick had a tiny smirk.  
  
    "Oh, shut up," Brittany also barely smiled, wagging her head. "Well, you know what to do if you see him."  
  
    Nick showed off his beacon and how he kept it close to his person.  
  
    "Fine, okay," Brittany nodded. "I gotta get back and file my report."  
  
    "Sounds fun," Nick chided, but then his face became serious and he put a paw on her shoulder. "Hey, take care of yourself and your family, all right? You're strong enough for them."  
  
    "Thanks, Nick," the young vixen offered a wobbly smile. "I'm trying."  
  
    "Oh, and tell Judy 'hi' for me, while you're at it," Nick's smile grew.  
  
    "Tch," Brittany rolled her eyes, pulling away from him. "You two should just make out already."  
  
    Nick chuckled. "You don't know what you're talking about, sweetheart."  
  
    Brittany telescoped her rod back out and flew off in a blast. Nick watched her go, looking at her escaping into the sunset sky. He chuckled to himself. Kiss Judy? That'd be the day.  
  
    At any rate, it'd probably make him less nauseated than her driving.  
  


* * *

  
    Nick found his eyes flicking to the diner's kitchen every time a fire blazed up. He could barely focus on his chicken burger, which did taste very good. Another week, another uneventful time.  
  
    [I'm on my way home now, Nicholas, is everything okay?] A text from his mother.  
  
    [Never better, Mom.] He texted back, placing his phone on the table.  
  
    Maybe that blue kit just didn't know how to use the powers he stole, and was having trouble. Maybe there was some sort of medical reaction to having too many powers that didn't agree with his preexisting ones.  
  
    "Could only hope," Nick said aloud, chuckling darkly.  
  
    His eyes caught on those of a tawny Corsac fox. Nick's eyes narrowed a second as he walked to the restroom. Corsac foxes were pretty uncommon in Zootopia.  
  
    "Wonder if he's come to sample the great flavors of Carlos' little greasy spoon here," Nick chuckled. He continued on his food.  
  
    The young Corsac fox stopped near his table.  
  
    "You're the Hustler, right?" His voice was youthful, unassuming.  
  
    "Uh, you've got the wrong fox, kit," Nick chuckled. "You know, we red foxes are dime a dozen. All look roguishly handsome and all that."  
  
    "Well, you look enough like him," the young fox sat down on the other side of Nick's booth. "Uh, you mind if I get a picture with you or something? Tell my friends I saw the Hustler?"  
  
    Nick gave a pleasant smile.  
  
    Inside, however, he was not smiling.  
  
    It was no sense he could name, but something was wrong about that young male fox. Something in his eyes. They were the yellow of the Appointed. Nick took in a smell, but the smell was inconclusive. Still, he knew. It was _him_.  
  
    "What, you want my autograph too?" Nick grinned.  
  
    "Couldn't hurt, I guess," Nick reached for his phone. "Let's get that picture, huh?"  
  
    The phone scooted several inches away from Nick's paw. His eyes darted to the unnatural movement.  
  
    "Little cooldown on your drink, Mr. Wilde?" The fox asked. He gestured at Nick's cola, which started to ice a bit; the glass getting frosty.  
  
    "Well, well, get another dye job, have we?" Nick managed to keep his fake smile.  
  
    The fox's expression didn't change. "Don't worry, I won't take up too much of your evening."


	6. It's Not Your Time

    Nick spent several moments staring at the teenage fox sitting on the other side of the booth. His own face was casual as he tried to read the blank expression of the younger fox. His "guest" was almost certainly _trying_ to hide his emotions, Nick could sense that much. Being a quick study of mammals, he surmised the kit was trying to remain calm specifically so he _couldn't_ be read. Nick managed a faux-friendly smile.  
  
    "Okay, so," Nick sniffed, taking in a whiff of the other fox. He definitely smelled a hint of fur dye. "You sure you don't want me to get a picture with you, kit? Maybe show your mom what a great dye job you got?" The red fox reached for his phone again.  
  
    "No, shut up," the younger fox replied curtly, reaching to the phone as well. With neither of them touching it, Nick's phone went limply clattering along the table and into the wall. The fox looked at his empty paw, seemingly surprised he had done this.  
  
    It was the easiest misdirection Nick had ever done. With the both ostensibly focused on the phone, Nick had taken out his ZED beacon under the table with his other hand and purposefully clicked it once and made sure to press  _only_ once, firmly. Nick's brow went up at the other fox's display of his stolen talents.  
  
    "Nice little trick, there," Nick cleared his throat, pocketing the beacon and hoping help would arrive swiftly. Until then, he had a pawful of cards he had to play. He silently supplicated for the wisdom to play them in the correct order. "The 'Appointed', was it?"  
  
    "You know why I'm here."  
  
    Nick pondered over the voice. The tone attempted to evoke steel and confidence, but Nick could detect the youth and affect of the voice. The look on Nick's face must have annoyed the Appointed, so he leaned in.  
  
    "Just a drop of your blood and I'll be gone."  
  
    "Oh, is that it?" Nick huffed, smiling. "Just give you over something that valuable to me?"  
  
    "I... need it," the Appointed replied. A moment's hesitation.  
  
    "Just...  _obey_ you, like that," Nick snapped his fingers. "By the way, in an instant, it could be over, you know. Like that." He snapped again, making the other fox flinch. Nick took a steadying breath, which he channeled into a coy smirk on the exhale. He was really good at bluffing, but he hoped he wouldn't overplay his paw. "I'm assuming you know how my powers work." He snapped again, louder. "Just one literal snap and you're done. You'd never even see it coming."  
  
    The Appointed flinched again at the threat, delivered in such a casual tone. "You wouldn't. The ZED just got off your tail..." His eyes darted to other customers in the eatery. "There's too many witnesses."  
  
    "Just how much  _do_ you know about me?" Nick let out a cocky chuckle. "First time I took someone out, it was in a crowded diner. Witnesses everywhere. How'd you think I became wanted?"  
  
    The Appointed began to shiver. "Tch.. vv-vv..." Nick's eyes narrowed a bit as what looked like frost appeared on some bits of his fur.  
  
    "Mm, those powers you stole not fully agreeing with you?" Nick drained the obvious reproach from his voice, but let his even tone carry it in spirit. "My sympathies."  
  
    "Ghh... I need your power... just yours and then I'm done..." The Appointed grit his teeth as he shivered.  
  
    "Powers like the ones you stole from those little vixens?" Nick sneered. "No deal. They were kits."  
  
    "I didn't-"  
  
    "They. Were. KITS," Nick enunciated with a calm darkness. The Appointed flinched again, more violently, shivering again.  
  
    "I tried vv-vv-very hard not to hurt them," the Appointed protested.  
  
    "You're old enough to know that there's more than one type of pain," Nick responded. "What's your name, kit?"  
  
    "It's... the Appointed-"  
  
    Nick smacked the table with one paw. He reached his paw over the table and snapped one more time.  
  
    "Will!" He yelped. "It's Will..."  
  
    Mammals were starting to stare, so Nick decided to ease up a bit, and sat back in his seat. "So, who's having you do this?"  
  
    "I can't tell you that," The Appointed ran his paws through his arms, trying to slough off the frost forming there. He seemed to be getting the mastery of his fear somehow. Nick didn't have too many cards left to play.  
  
    "You can, and you should," Nick frowned. "Unless you want me to believe you came up with this whole power fantasy on your own. Which, you know, I could see it? A lot of stupid mammals get this idea in their head that they can be the one to 'save the world' because they can pull off some fancy little tricks."  
  
    The Appointed looked insulted.  
  
    "But you're not like that, are you Will?" Nick gave a patronizing half-smile. "You have some sort of grand purpose, I'm sure. More important than those other delusional, lesser mammals. You're a red fox, right? Despite your chameleon act, and-"  
  
    "Shut up," The Appointed's fear had evaporated. He sat up in his chair. "You don't know anything about me. I've been Appointed. I'll be the one to bring peace to this city."  
  
    "Who appointed you?" Nick leaned in.  
  
    "I can't tell you that," he responded. "I won't tell you that."  
  
    "Course not," Nick shrugged as if this was a minor detail. "But I can tell  _you_ that no matter how many powers you end up copying, it'll all be for nothing. Always a bigger fish, kit. And if that fish isn't a red fox, then, shoo, you're out of luck, aren't you?"  
  
    "With your power I'll be unstoppable," The Appointed sneered. "Just one drop of blood from you..."  
  
    Nick caught a glimpse of Judy outside the window, giving him a questioning expression. The fox did his best to ignore her to not lead on that she'd arrived.  
  
    "Why don't we step outside?" Nick asked, getting his wallet out and laying some money on the table. "If you can take a drop of blood from me, I'd say you've earned it. But only once we've stepped outside. All these witnesses, you know? Wouldn't want them seeing some extreme violence if it could be avoided, now do you?"  
  
    The Appointed started to shiver again. Terror clearly gripped at his very bones, and not just as a side result of some of the other powers he'd stolen. He was in fear for his life, and his resolve was being shaken by the immense danger he perceived from Nick.  
  
    He just needed to get the Appointed out that door, then it wouldn't even matter that Nick couldn't actually deliver on that promised danger.  
  
    "Fine."  
  
    Nick's eyes opened in dull surprise as the Appointed got up and Nick slowly, deliberately walked with him out of the diner.  
  
    It took but two seconds for the Appointed to dart his eyes over and notice the uniformed ZED bunny approaching them.  
  
    "Excuse me, sir," Judy began in a polite voice, staring directly at the Appointed, "I'm going to need you to step away from this red fox gentlemammal here."  
  
    "You tricked me!" The Appointed snarled at Nick, who regarded him in return with a narrow-eyed disdain.  
  
    "I'm Judy Hopps of the ZED, back away from him," Judy commanded calmly, pointing with a warning finger at the smaller fox. She repeated herself in a louder voice: "I'm Judy Hopps of the ZED! Clear the area!"  
  
    Though some rubberneckers persisted, gasps followed by a mass exodus of the street ensued from the pedestrians; especially from those that had already seen collateral damage from the ZED and empowered criminals.  
  
    The Appointed looked left and right, shivering in fear and terror. Nick eyed him once more and thought to take his leave.  
  
    "Hold on!" The Appointed grit his chattering teeth and flicked his claw. His arm started to grow jagged crystals of ice, especially along his paw. "I told you I'm not leaving without your blood!"  
  
    The Appointed jumped at Nick and swiped, but Nick hopped back and avoided the blow.  
  
    TCHAK!  
  
    Judy's warning kick had been nearly as quick as the Appointed's attack. The resulting shockwave made both Nick and the Appointed stumble back a step. The Appointed switched his attention to Judy, holding his iced arm in front of himself protectively.  
  
    "You...! This doesn't concern you!" The Appointed shouted. Nick's eyes widened as the assailant thought to get in close to the bunny, making her kicks useless. The dash was pretty fast, owing to a natural fox's quickness.  
  
    However, Judy was an experienced fighter, thanks in no small part to Nick himself.  
  
    TCHAAAK!  
  
    A stronger kick sent the Appointed sailing backward. The icy protrusions that were growing exploded around his arm from the force, and the shards caused small lacerations. The fox yelped in pain.  
  
    " _Stand down_ ," Judy enunciated slowly with her coldest authority.  
  
    "Uuuuraaaaahh!" The Appointed wailed in frustration and despair, and the ice shards flying through the air slowed and then halted. They redirected, shooting at Judy like tiny missiles.  
  
    "Aagh!" Judy's leg was cocked for another kick, but a few of the ice shards managed to slice her before she managed to kick the rest away.  
  
    "Judy!" Nick yelped in concern, though he realized that without his powers, he should be making a hasty retreat. He turned tail and ran, though he kept his muzzle half-turned to watch.  
  
    "Stay out of my WAY!" The Appointed shouted. He swiped at the air with his paw, and a medium-sized parked car abruptly skidded sideways from its parking space and moved toward Judy.  
  
    "What the!?" Judy crouched, attempting to leap out of the way, but the car was too wide. It pinned the lower half of her body against the building she was closest to. "Rrghh! Nghh!"  
  
    Immediately, the Appointed turned his attention back to Nick, who was looking desperate at his worsening plight. Nick took a sharp right turn towards an alleyway, hoping to lose him.  
  
    "No! You're  _not_ getting away!" The Appointed called out from further down the street. A larger car moved from a different parking space at the Appointed's unconscious command, slamming itself into the gap.  
  
    Nick only gave a moment's pause at this, and started to try scaling the car.  
  
    The Appointed gestured to him with a hand. He found that he couldn't actually will Nick to stop moving with the psychic powers he'd stolen. Desperation and fear crept back into his heart as it looked like Nick would get away, and his outstretched hand grew ice crystals again, jagged and more numerous than before. He clenched his fist at the numbing pain of the cold and made his way forward.  
  
    "Nick, look out!" Judy shouted, grunting as she tried to get enough leverage to free herself from the pinning car.  
  
    Nick spared a look back at the warning to see the Appointed take a swipe at him with an unwieldy icy pawful of claws. Nick jumped back off the top of the car and down to the street. The ice shattered against the car and the Appointed winced in pain at his miss, but focused on that pain and dire anger to create another ice claw, focusing his cold emotions into the growing weapon.  
  
    Quickly scrambling to his feet, Nick made some more distance between him and the Appointed, but then turned to face him, causing the smaller fox to flinch.  
  
    The red fox had a wild idea borne of being at his wit's end. He knew that often, powers responded to desperation. In this, his hour of need, he focused his will on the one burst of speed that would thwart his assailant, and began running  _toward_ the Appointed.  
  
    The unexpected action made the Appointed actually pause in his pursuit, terror gripping him firmly. His feet started to grow ice as well, and they sought to affix him to the ground.  
  
    Nick ran forward ten or twelve steps, then crouched right in front of the Appointed.  
  
    "Sorry, kit."  
  
    He didn't feel the tension build up. He realized in a half-moment that he'd made a grave error in judgement, but there was nothing he could do but follow through. He delivered a hard left cross to the Appointed's muzzle, snapping it to the side.  
  
    After one second, and the younger fox realized he wasn't dead, he countered by driving his icy claws into Nick's midsection.  
  
    "Grrk..."  
  
    "NO! NICK!"  
  
    TTT-TTCHAK!  
  
    No sooner had the Appointed withdrawn his bloody ice claws from Nick's body than the car that had previously imprisoned Judy went shooting into the building the two were next to. The loud crashing impact made the Appointed stumble away from Nick, who knelt, his paws going to cover his wound.  
  
    "Finally," the Appointed breathed out, gazing at the blood on his claws in a manic haze. "With this I'll..."  
  
    "GEYSER SPIRAL!"  
  
    Nick felt a burst of wind as a fountain of bright white energy twisted past him, making his eyes go wide. He'd heard that explosive sound only once before.  
  
    TCHOOOOM!  
  
    Nick looked in the direction of the kick and saw the Appointed had been introduced into a wall. He had a precise, terrible gap in his midsection. With half a whimper and pinprick eyes, he slumped over, bringing his paw over his grievous wound.  
  
    "Nick! Nick!!" Judy wailed, rushing over to the injured mammal. "Just hang on okay? Keep breathing! Oh... Nick!"  
  
    His thoughts were becoming blurry. There seemed to be a lot of blood coming out of him, and his body wasn't responding like he knew it could. His powers weren't coming back in his time of need. He was...  
  
    Would this really be his end? Here in a street? With the bunny standing over him?  
  
    "Judy Hopps! This is Judy Hopps, we have casualties on Prowlard Street. I need reinforcements!"  
  
    Nick had never considered what his last words might be. He'd never thought he'd have to come to terms with his mortality, at least, not anytime in the foreseeable future. Yet, he was getting so tired. His head sagged; felt heavy.  
  
    "Nick, no, just... look at me, okay!?"  
  
    He saw a blurry bunny.  
  
    "Just hang on, Nick! I'm... I'm getting help!"  
  
    "Yeah."  
  
    Yeah. Was that going to be his last word? A corner of his muzzle crept up as the absurdity of it focused his extinguishing energy into one last little self-depreciating smirk.  
  
    Nick found he couldn't obey the bunny, and his senses fled.  
  


* * *

  
    He was sure it was going to be a troublesome evening.  
  
    Nick crept into the sparse forest outlining the streets of the Shady Greens subdivision. He was being a coward, he knew. He could just go and talk to his mother and make things okay between them. Yes there would probably be some tears shed, heck, some of them might even come from him. Still, would it really be  _that_ bad to just go talk to her about everything that happened?  
  
    Stopping in his tracks, Nick noted the positions of the trees and listened to the soft rustle of their leaves as the wind moved through the branches on the cool, clear night.  
  
    "Huh."  
  
    A very distinct feeling of deja vu set upon Nick. As if he'd experienced that very picture in his mind someplace else. He shook it off.  
  
    He walked forward a few more steps, and the feeling passed. He'd just head up to his mother's place and make things square with her. It would be the just thing to do.  
  
    A different, nameless sensation gripped Nick. Not sight, sound, taste, touch, or smell. Just a fleeting intuition. It make him want to look behind him, as-  
  
    "Hrrrrk!"  
  
    Nick instead looked downward as he saw a bloody short sword had made it through his midsection.  
  
    "Wh-what...?"  
  
    Nick staggered forward several paces as he felt the blade withdraw from him. He felt his body quickly respond to heal the wound, and the staggering was capped off by Nick instinctively crouching. He felt power and tension course into his legs.  
  
    He half-turned to see a dumbfounded, cloaked blue fox, irises almost glowing yellow. He looked at his bloodied blade.  
  
    "I can't believe it, that _worked_...!?"  
  
    The fox had a young voice and he carried his blade with almost a reverence, his paw trembling slightly.  
  
    "What...?" Nick gasped. His mind flashed to his first murder, where he'd been impaled by surprise. He decided to hesitate for a moment before retaliating on this young fox.  
  
    "All right, all I need to do now is..."  
  
    The fox drew back the short sword with his right hand, aiming it at his left arm.  
  
    Instantly, a terror exploded in Nick's mind. The fox knew exactly what he was doing; he was about to steal his powers!  
  
    Crkk.  
  
    The speed burst happened almost subconsciously, and the fox slumped over sideways, his body limp.  
  
    "No... no..." Nick grit his teeth. "Damnit.... DAMNIT!" He looked at the young blue fox. His neck was clearly broken, eyes unseeing. "I had just... I _just_..." He opened his paws in supplication, as if to explain to an invisible audience his actions. "Damnit kit... why'd you have to..." He looked at the fox's sword and kicked it away from him. "...Now what?"  
  
    Again, there was a nameless sensation. It didn't communicate anything concrete to Nick, it just felt like his neckfur pointed, like some sort of warning of a threat without a designation.  
  
    From the front walked the shadow of an animal. Nick's eyes narrowed as the moonlight quickly made the identity of the mammal clear, its form displayed as it walked closer. However, it was like no animal Nick had ever seen.  
  
    A little more than half his height, it was furry with pointed ears and a muzzle. It looked almost canid, but the shape of its face was all wrong. It had a ridiculously long banded tail, and its clothes were also unfamiliar. Most striking, however, were its almost solid yellow eyes, with small, piercing pupils set in the middle of them. It looked down at the fallen fox and put a hand on its wrist.  
  
    "I... I think the kit may have fallen," Nick said lamely, though his terror at being found out for murder was eclipsed by the bafflement he felt at this new creature. "We should... I'm going to get help."  
  
    "He will be fine," the animal said.  
  
    Nick swallowed and he became increasingly unnerved, close to panic. The mammal, animal, whatever it was, had a voice unlike any he'd heard before. It was clear, almost feminine, and spoke distinctly, but it was of an accent he couldn't place. For that matter, the animal wore clothes of an origin he couldn't even guess at. Nick prided himself on knowledge of all the mammal kinds that lived in Zootopia, even the obscure ones, so being at such a loss was truly, deeply unsettling.  
  
    "You think so?" Nick replied, taking a step back.  
  
    The animal offered "her" hand -Nick was guessing- but not to him, to the fallen fox. In a swift motion, a blue and yellow swirl leaped from the body and back into the new mammal, where it vanished. She sighed and shrugged.  
  
    Nick looked back to the fallen fox. The body's fur was now the classic colors of a red fox, and the unseeing eyes were brown. Nick squinted and looked dubiously at this obviously empowered mammal.  
  
    "What did you just do?" He asked, his voice more demanding and steely than he'd thought it would be.  
  
    A small smile lit up the muzzle of the unfamiliar animal. This looked especially scary when juxtaposed with her piercing eyes. "Do not worry. There is nothing you can do to truly harm this one. Of course, I cannot speak for the morality of your society on such matters, so you may wish to dispose of the body."  
  
    "What are you saying!?" Nick exploded. "What... ARE you!?"  
  
    The animal looked at Nick, and her eyes narrowed briefly. She tilted her head a few degrees in curiosity. "...Hold... have you... are you feeling right?"  
  
    "What!?" Nick ran a paw through his head. "No, I'm not feeling right! I've never seen an animal like you in my entire life! You just... sucked some kit's soul out or- or something... and... I just killed a fox that stabbed- oh God, I killed a third mammal. Damnit...!" Nick grit his teeth.  
  
    "I do not mean that..." the mammal shook her head briefly and stepped closer. "...Have you recently felt... familiarity? I believe it also is called deja vu?"  
  
    "What...?" Nick's panic gave way to dread. "...How could you know that?"  
  
    The mammal's face lit up again and she looked... fascinated? Her expressions all seemed off and unsettling on her face.  
  
    "Have you... you have traveled, yes!" She got closer, and Nick took a step back defensively. "Please, tell me... I am awash in curiosity... do you remember when you are from? How long since?"  
  
    "Excuse me?" Nick raised his brow. "What are you talking about? I..."  
  
    In an instant, Nick was ripped from that experience, like a trickster deity changing a channel on his life.  
  


* * *

  
    Nick's eyes opened and blinked. Stars were everywhere for as far as he could see. The sound of wind was prevalent.  
  
    "This is it, huh?" Nick groaned. "I'm dead. ...This is what death is like... never thought I'd..."  
  
    The fox closed his eyes, feeling sorrowful. "The afterlife... and it's in space? I guess those stories about the Celestials..." He sighed out. "Please, Karma. I tried to make things square, really, I did. If... you're going to take me to hell, could you make it hurt a little less than I've heard it does?"  
  
    To his jerking surprise, a voice answered him, and a vaguely familiar one, at that.  
  
    "Well, I'm not Karma, and I'm not gonna take you to hell, just down to earth."  
  
    Nick looked to his right, where he saw the floating form of Skye, a gentle, but cautious smile on her face. She held up her paws defensively, and Nick saw she was clothed in the ZED uniform.  
  
    "What!? Skye!?" Nicks eyes widened.  
  
    "Yes, that's where we are," Skye half-giggled. "We need to go back down to-"  
  
    "The GROUND!?" Nick shrieked, realizing very suddenly that he wasn't actually on it. He looked down below and saw the beautifully twinkling city of Zootopia. It was far below him. "OH GOD!"  
  
    "Don't panic! Don't panic!" Skye saw him wobbling in the air and rushed towards him, grabbing him by the wrists.      
      
    "Am I... how am I flying!?" Nick squawked; he was starting to feel gravity assert itself over him and he started to lose altitude.  
  
    "Hrrrgh!" Skye pulled against him. "Nick, think happy thoughts!"  
  
    "Pardon!?" Nick legs thrashed about in midair, finding no purchase, fueling his panic.  
  
    "Think about pretty females or something!" Skye smiled anxiously down at him. "You know, whatever gets you going!"  
  
    Nick's maw half-opened. Despite one ostensibly being right in front of him, he was finding it hard to concentrate what with having woken up _in midair_.  
  
    "I don't think its working!" Nick struggled.  
  
    Skye was losing her grip. "Chicken sandwiches! Think of tasty, delicious chicken sandwiches!"  
  
    The yell blasted all other thoughts out of Nicks mind by its sheer unexpectedness. He blinked.  
  
    "Chicken...?" Nick started to feel odd, weightless. "I... I  _do_ like chicken sandwiches."  
  
    "Yes! Aren't they the best!?" Skye replied hastily. "Hold onto that delicious, savory thought!"  
  
    Nick seemed to be floating of his own accord, and Skye carefully let go of his wrists.  
  
    "I... can fly?" Nick patted his chest. He felt a bit of dampness on his fur.  
  
    "You can fly!" Skye replied.  
  
    "I can fly...  _how_ can I fly...?" Nick scratched his head.  
  
    "I stuck you with some of my blood after you went unconscious..." Skye smiled apologetically. "Sorry, it was the only way I could think of to save you."  
  
    "No, don't apologize, I just... heh..." Nick wobbled a bit. "Chicken sandwiches, right." He regained his composure. "So uh... how do you get _down_?"  
  
    "Well, the easiest way for me is to just slowly remove the thought from your head," Skye held up an invisible sandwich. "Like, eating a sandwich makes you happy, right? But when it starts to go away, you get less happy, but still kinda happy. Sort of... it's hard to explain; I've never had to give a crash course to anyone before."  
  
    "Um, lemme give that a shot-"  
  
    Nick started to hear familiar clacking sounds.  
  
    TCHAK... TCHAK. TCHAK! TCHAK!  
  
    A small gray missile flew past them.  
  
    "NICK!"  
  
    The form of the bunny quickly fell out of sight.  
  
    TCHAK!  
  
    "Nick, you're okay!" Judy shouted as she flew past him.  
  
    "Hey, Buster!" Nick called out with nervous relief, finding his position in the air solidifying. He had to laugh. Judy fell past him again.  
  
    TCHAK!  
  
    "I'm so relieved! But could you guys-"  
  
    TCHAK!  
  
    "Come back down!? Like right now!?"  
  
    Judy started to fall again, then did some lighter midair jumps to slow her acceleration back down to the ground.  
  
    "Must be exhausting for her to try to fly like that," Nick chuckled. "Okay, so slowly eating a sandwich?"  
  
    Nick attempted Skye's thought experiment and slowly started to drift down, it was almost excruciatingly slow, but he was making progress. When he was close enough to the ground, he tried to banish the happy thought and felt gravity take hold of him again. He quickly met the ground.  
  
    "Ow," Nick grumbled, lifting himself off the pavement. He quickly saw what the issue was. Despite him remembering seeing the Appointed's corpse up against a wall, it was no longer there, just a large splotch of blood.  
  
    "Yeah... um... we have a problem," Judy frowned.  
  
    "The Appointed got my powers after all?" Nick frowned.  
  
    "Seems that way," Judy returned the frown. "He must have slipped away while I was... uh, distracted by your body floating off into the sky."  
  
    Nick had to chuckle, and Judy placed her face in her palm.  
  
    "Sorry, that's just... really funny," Nick felt very tired. "Hey, does flying normally make you feel lightheaded, Skye? Like, light on the sky, light on the... woo..."  
  
    "Careful!" Skye moved to help him up. "Urgh, he's heavy...!"  
  
    "Should get some super strength..." Nick chuckled blearily.  
  
    "We're gonna need an expedite on that bus, and bring the ZED-A," Judy said into her communicator. "We're gonna have to clean up all this superblood."  
  
    "Try to stay conscious, okay Nick?" Skye struggled with him. "Hrrgh, for my sake, at least!"  
  
    "Is he okay?" Judy nibbled on her lower lip.  
  
    "Flying makes me hungry a lot of times," Skye grumbled, "and he's low on blood, so it's probably not good for-"  
  
    Nick promptly passed out.  
  


* * *

  
    It was a dreamless sleep.  
  
    Or, it should have been.  
  
    He remembered those eyes, those bright yellow eyes. Not glowing, just solid. Like dim suns with small eclipses of the moon set in them.  
  
    The eyes.  
  
    The memory of killing... that fox. The Appointed?  
  
    Those weren't his memories, were they? It was a dream.  
  
    That wasn't how things happened.  
  
    But those eyes. He'd never seen them before.  
  
    He'd never _seen_ them before.  
  
    But still, somehow he knew those eyes.  
  
    Just not what they belonged to.


	7. A Respite

    Nick's eyes slowly opened, but squinted when they were exposed to a very white light. Blinking rapidly, he tried to will his eyes to adjust faster as he moved to bring his paws to cover them. He couldn't. They were bound; his ankles too.   
  
    "What's going on?" He found himself saying, alerting quickly.  
  
    "Just a precaution," a very familiar voice called out. "With your new powers, you might have gone floating off while unconscious." He moved his head to look; he appeared to be in some sort of medical lab. Across the room was a badger who also  _looked_ very familiar.  
  
    "Honey...?"  
  
    The badger turned, dressed smartly in a lab coat and well-kept clothes, giving Nick a stern look. "No. Doctor Madge Badger." She narrowed an eye. "Do you... know my sister?"  
  
    A few alarm bells went off in Nick's head. "Oh, no, haha." He smiled in a strained way. "Just uh- I'm dating a badger and I..." he didn't know where to continue his lie, "dunno, must have hit my head on the way down. Am I going to be okay?"  
  
    "Signs point to yes," Madge answered, looking at some data with a very dull interest. She tapped a device she wore on her head, near her ear. "This is Doctor Badger. Mr. Wilde is up."  
  
    "Ah, um, could you let me go, then?" Nick chuckled, testing his bonds a little. There was no way to get his feet any purchase to burst out of them. It was weird to even think of operating with his powers again, but then, he had had them for so long.  
  
    "You'll have to ask Commander Fangmeyer that question, though I suspect she'll have some questions of her own beforehand," Madge said. Nick looked for a malevolent smirk, but her face kept even.  
  
    "Great," Nick went limp against the table in a huff. He looked around the room as he waited for the tigress to arrive. "So uh, how exactly am I alive? Did Skye's blood reactivate my own powers somehow?"  
  
    "I'm not really at liberty to discuss how 'power dampening' works with you," Madge responded in a dull voice. "Suffice it to say you're alive thanks to her, and your DNA appears to be stable despite everything that's happened to it recently, so that's good for you." She mused harder over some other data points. "Unusually high spike of activity in your hippocampus, though..."  
  
    Nick felt like he took a stab of pure anxiety as she insinuated there was something wrong with his brain. "Well, where else are they supposed to get their degrees?"  
  
    Madge's eyes flicked over to him, then back to her computer.  
  
    "Geh, not even a smile?" Nick winced. "Not even a look of _pity_?"  
  
    "That activity could be explained away by the acquisition of Skye's power but..." Madge shook her head. "I dunno, it seems high even for that."  
  
    Nick's toes and fingers flexed uncomfortably. "Great. This is all sorts of fun."  
  
    Fangmeyer finally entered the room, followed by Skye floating behind her.  
  
    "Kristen, Skye, how are ya?" Nick greeted awkwardly.  
  
    "Hi, Nick...!" Skye waved her fingers.   
  
    "Hey," Nick gave her his most easygoing smirk, heedless of how ridiculous it must have looked from his prone position.  
  
    "Doing okay?"  
  
    "Pretty much," Nick nodded, then his gaze focused on Fangmeyer, who held her arms behind her and stood tall. "Though, while I appreciate all you guys have done for me, I don't really think bondage is my thing, so could you let me go? I do appreciate you trying to broaden my horizons, though."  
  
    Madge didn't react. Fangmeyer's frown seemed to broaden. Skye gave a wincing smile.  
  
    "At least a pity smile there," Nick seemed pleased with himself.  
  
    "Well, he appears to be intact," Fangmeyer said. "While that's fine, there is the issue that he now contains all his former powers, plus Skye's."  
  
    "I told you I'm really sorry, Commander," Skye shook her head, holding her hands out plaintively as she hovered there. "It's just... I couldn't let him die without trying to save him. It was only fair... you know, Karma is kind of a canid thing, and..." she trailed off as she received a look from Fangmeyer.  
  
    "Oh, I get what this is," Nick grinned a dark smile. "Planning on using your little trump card mammal and removing my powers? Just so you don't have a wild card like me running around with superpowers while you're trying to deal with the kit?"  
  
    A look of barely-restrained anger exploded into Fangmeyer's eyes. Her pupils shrunk and slit intimidatingly. Nick actually flinched.  
  
    "You have  _no idea_ what you're talking about," Fangmeyer sneered.  
  
    "Y'know, I did get an idea, about that," Nick nodded, chewing on his lower lip. "Why don't you just use that power on... I dunno, the Appointed? Seems like you could get rid of the problem very easi-"  
  
    "Shut your _maw_ , Wilde," Fangmeyer said, her voice raising a few decibels. "You do not know how it works. You do not know how dangerous it would be to craft that sort of situation. Moreover, the most important factor there is that..." she bent over towards Nick and began to enunciate. "Mammals are not _tools_."  
  
    Nick thought about that for awhile while an anxious silence held its ground.  
  
    "A recording, then?" Nick offered. "Of the song-"  
  
    "Again, you have _no idea_ ," Fangmeyer waved her paw. "A recording wouldn't work. Decent idea, yes. We've tried something similar in an experiment. We're not complete idiots here. The power doesn't carry through recording devices, and then there's the ethics of removing someone's powers, even voluntarily."  
  
    "Ethics?" Nick scoffed. "Seems like a petty little quibble for a big ol' government organization while you have a super-superpowered teenager running around with almost every red fox ability in the book."  
  
    "I didn't come in here to be interrogated," Fangmeyer said darkly, "you're the one that needs to answer questions for me."  
  
    "Oh, right, forgot," Nick said blithely.  
  
    "But, let me clarify something," the tigress pointed a claw at him. "You will be released soon, and you will get to keep your powers. However. Cross me or the ZED, and I will have Skye fight you to her fullest ability."  
  
    Skye's eyes found a corner of the room to look at.  
  
    "Well, guess I'll have to behave myself then," Nick smirked. "Wouldn't want to hurt that nice little floating fox."  
  
    "Awful cocky, aren't you?" Fangmeyer returned menacing smile. "I personally wouldn't underestimate the kind of advice that Chief Advisor Bogo is able to give."  
  
    "Didn't do  _you_ much good, huh?" Nick laughed openly shaking his head. "Oh wow, you remember that one time? Newly appointed Primary Enforcer Fangmeyer. You barely even touched me. Skye, you remember that one, right? It was hilarious. You guys were so sure you could take me." He laughed again. "Wow... hey, can someone wipe my eyes? They're getting a bit teary and I seem to be tied up at the moment."  
  
    Fangmeyer merely lost her grin and stood up straight.  
  
    "I could try torturing him for awhile," Madge offered. "See if he'll be a little more compliant."  
  
    "Doctor Badger...!" Skye hissed reprovingly.  
  
    "Just a thought."  
  
    "No no, this fox is just trying to rile me up," Fangmeyer explained. "Make me lose control. Well. I might have always been a bit of a hothead, but I'm in command now, and I take my role seriously. No little grandstanding punk is going to take my cool from me."  
  
    "Yeah, you do have a built-in fan," Nick grinned. "And no one can take that from you. Except that one mystery mammal, I guess."  
  
    "I wouldn't have to make it _hurt_ ," Madge continued. "Y'know, he could just be made to be really, really uncomfortable."  
  
    "Thank you for the offer, but no," Fangmeyer sneered at Nick. "Before the confrontation outside the diner, Enforcer Hopps saw you speaking to the Appointed. Did you learn anything pertinent?"  
  
    "If I did, why would I tell you?" Nick suddenly became serious and his brow fell. He gave a pointed thrash at his bonds. "Especially when you've been so HOSPITABLE."  
  
    "Nick, would you please just cooperate?" Skye asked plaintively. "We're all trying to achieve the same thing here."  
  
    "Hey, is this good cop, bad cop, mad scientist?" Nick grumbled. "That's a new one for me."  
  
    "We are trying to bring this 'Appointed' to justice, Wilde," Fangmeyer growled. "Your help would be much appreciated."  
  
    "And what  _is_ this 'justice', huh?" Nick returned Fangmeyer's glare. "You probably just want him killed, yeah? Like, how are you going to imprison someone like him, especially because you couldn't even keep  _me_ down? Well, now notwithstanding..."  
  
    "Have you lost your mind?" Fangmeyer tilted her head, honestly baffled. "This fox KILLED you, Wilde. You were DEAD. For a least a minute or two."  
  
    "And I am very grateful to Skye for her-"  
  
    "I'm not done," Fangmeyer balled a fist. "Can you explain to me why you are so  _adamant_ against our attempts to rid ourselves of this threat? Is this some 'fox thing' like Karma? I really don't understand! Because unless your heart is still bleeding, which I'm quite sure it isn't, at least literally, I don't understand why you'd defend someone specifically because they were your own kind."  
  
    "That's not it," Nick became grave. "That has nothing to do with it. I think... someone's manipulating that kid. Someone's telling him what to do; feeding him information."  
  
    "Okay, that's something," Fangmeyer shrugged her hands. "Anything else?"  
  
    "I was going to look into a lead or too, and still will, once I get out of here," Nick nodded.  
  
    Fangmeyer's patience was being tested. "Anything you'd _care to share_...?" She enunciated through her teeth.  
  
    "No, actually," Nick said. "Because frankly, MA'AM, I don't trust the ZED to handle the situation with the nuance it needs."  
  
    Skye grew a sort of pained, disappointed look, and she shook her head and floated out of the room.  
  
    "Am I wrong?" Nick's voice raised. "Have you done a single thing to redeem yourselves in my eyes? Judy coming to my aid? Probably against your orders, if I had to guess. Skye saving me? What, she had to _apologize_ to you? So here's the thing, kitty, why don't you just let _me_ try to see what makes this kit tick? I mean, hell, worst case scenario, I die again somehow, and then all the glory is yours for the taking."  
  
    "You think this is about 'glory'?" Fangmeyer said lowly, leaning in very close to Nick. "We are trying to solve an impending city-wide crisis. If you were actually a decent mammal, you would help us. But no, you want to go out and do your own thing, get that hero badge to pin on yourself. The ZED is about issues greater than itself. It's not about glory or PRIDE." She spat the words at him.  
  
    "Well now, since we've established I'm clearly not cut out for helping you guys, are we done?" Nick replied casually.  
  
    Fangmeyer stood up again. "Let him go, Doctor."  
  
    "I must advise against this course of action," Madge noted. "Officially."  
  
    "So noted," Fangmeyer continued. "Proceed."  
  
    Nick was released from the table, and he sat up. Fangmeyer turned her back to him and began to walk away.  
  
    "Hey uh, thanks, Kristen." Nick said awkwardly.  
  
    "We are _not_ on a first-name basis, Wilde."  
  
    As Nick walked down the halls of the ZED, he wondered whether he was going further into the complex or toward the exit. He felt a bit too sheepish to ask any of the personnel. By chance, he ran into Chief Advisor Bogo. The buffalo was carrying a pad and wearing glasses while looking at it.  
  
    "Oh, Chief Bogo!" Nick waved, coming over. "Hey, Commander Fangmeyer's doing a heck of a job, isn't she? Very professional." He grinned, folding his arms in mild satisfaction.   
  
    Bogo looked at him dully. "Mister Wilde. You're alive." Bogo's pupils vanished. "Hm, is that how the powers are sitting within you? Well, fair enough, I suppose."  
  
    "Is that good or bad?" Nick cringed.  
  
    "I cannot say," Bogo cleared his throat. "You must realize you're a unique case, Wilde. I don't think any mammal in history has ever both gained powers, lost them, and then gained another set that contained your old powers. You're in uncharted territory."  
  
    "So when that 'dampening' wears off..." Nick rotated his wrist. "What... will my speed powers be twice as potent?"  
  
    "Or, they could just be like having two of the same model of vehicle," Bogo said in nearly a monotone, "you can only drive one at once, so you don't really gain the benefit from having the two copies at the same time. Or, you might turn into a zebra or explode. I simply don't know."  
  
    "Heh, good one," Nick pointed at him unsteadily. "Hey, can I ask a bit of a weirder question?"  
  
    "...I'm busy, but go ahead," Bogo grumbled.  
  
    "Do any mammals have time travel abilities?"   
  
    Bogo's eyes widened and he looked genuinely worried. "No."  
  
    "That wasn't convincing," Nick grinned, though he shared the worried smile.  
  
    Bogo shook his head. "No, and I hope to God no one ever does. However, I have good reason to believe that no mammal will ever access time travel powers."  
  
    "Why?" Nick tilted his head.  
  
    "Because we still _exist_ ," Bogo explained, holding out a hand. "Time travel is a an existential nightmare that shatters realities and invalidates actions themselves. If even one mammal could travel in time by any means, the implications are far too terrifying to think about. Thankfully, bending spacetime to achieve such an act would acquire a power level mutation of such a ridiculous degree that it might as well be impossible."  
  
    "But not out of the question?" The fox winced.  
  
    "Put it this way..." Bogo rolled his eyes, beginning to walk off. "I'd bet on mammals themselves being extinct one way or another before such a thing happened." Nick giggled nervously. "Stay out of trouble, Wilde."  
  
    "Wow, this place is just- just so much fun," Nick said sarcastically to himself as he tried to find the main exit.   
  


* * *

  
    Nick opened the doors into the cool evening breeze. The stars were just starting to come out. He found Judy standing there with her arms crossed, staring at the statue of Theodore Standler, the "Thunder Striker". The fox approached her from behind, but her ear twitching communicated that she knew of a presence.  
  
    "I met him once," Nick said, as if it was a distant memory. "He challenged me to a duel."  
  
    "Yeah?" Judy looked behind her. Her expression was muted; difficult to read. "What happened?"  
  
    "Well, I wouldn't say I 'won'..." Nick smirked, folding his own arms. "He sent me flying."  
  
    "Huh," the bunny almost smiled. She returned her gaze to the statue. "Y'know, I feel like if I was more like him, maybe I'd be better."  
  
    "What?" Nick chuckled. "Taller? Broader? Male? A deer?"  
  
    "No, dummy," Judy gave him a friendly sneer. "Just... stronger."  
  
    Nick returned his paws to his sides, looking up at the statue.  
  
    Judy sighed and bowed her head a little. "If I was stronger, maybe I could have saved you without Skye's help. Or at least, if I was _smarter_ , maybe I could have tracked the Appointed after he got away."  
  
    "Everyone makes mistakes," Nick shrugged. "Everyone has limitations."  
  
    "Easy for you to say," Judy scoffed at him, half-smiling, "now that you're unstoppable again."  
  
    "I... wouldn't say 'unstoppable'," Nick wiggled his forefinger. "For instance, I dunno that I'd want to be hit by Brittany's heat beam. The one she took out Jack with?"  
  
    "Yeah, I was there," Judy almost laughed.  
  
    "There's no coming back from disintegration," Nick chuckled, and the bunny had to break down laughing too, just at the absurdity.  
  
    The two were quiet and Judy returned her meditative gaze on the statue.  
  
    "It can't last, though," Nick shook his head.   
  
    The bunny turned her head. "What do you mean?"   
  
    "This... 'fox' thing," Nick sighed. "Something will go wrong... that's just the nature of mammals. Either you ZED guys will get an army of super-empowered red foxes, or this situation is going to repeat itself every time a rogue renard gets their claws on some superblood."  
  
    "Well, Brittany is _not_ fighting the Appointed, that much I know," Judy said firmly. "She is a hundred percent against taking Skye's blood and becoming a super-duper fox. Even if she could incinerate the Appointed. Still don't even know what he's AFTER... except 'power'."  
  
    "Seems like it'd be so easy, but I know it's not," Nick looked off to the side.  
  
    "Whatever the case, it's wrong to make someone do something they're completely opposed to," Judy put a paw on her hip. "Even if it'd be easy. Even if we even think it'd be necessary."  
  
    Nick looked at her curiously.  
  
    "Free will," Judy looked up at him wistfully. "It's like the only thing we mammals have that's a sacred right."  
  
    "No, I totally get you," Nick nodded. "That's why I've gotta try to find out something about this teenager myself. I don't want another Jack incident. Bad for all of us."  
  
    "That said," Judy narrowed an eye, "you do seem to like pushing away mammals who could help."  
  
    "So noted," Nick smirked. "But thank you for your assistance, I probably wouldn't be here without you today."  
  
    "Nah, you're looking for Skye," Judy insisted, her body language looking slightly uncomfortable.  
  
    "You came first," Nick grinned. "I'm guessing you either jumped the gun or even defied orders not to respond, because that's just the type of mammal you are. And..." he pointed his forefingers at Judy. "That's exactly the type of mammals I want to see with power. The ones that will stop at nothing to do what's right, even if it defies the 'order' of things. There's gotta be some of you... and they might as well not be foxes."  
  
    Judy looked at him with her big purple eyes. "Nick... what am I supposed to even say to that?"  
  
    Nick shrugged, giving her a small smile.  
  
    The main door opened again, and a smaller vixen came out. She looked between the two and smiled.  
  
    "Anyway..." Judy brushed her ears back. "I've got a lot to think about, and some training to do, so... see ya."  
  
    "I'm sure I will," Nick gave a casual salute, and turned it into a small wave when Brittany approached.  
  
    Brittany looked toward the retreating bunny, then back at the fox with an open-mouthed smile. "Oh my God. You two were about to make out, weren't you?" She stamped a foot. "Dangit, if I'd just come a few seconds later..."  
  
    "We were not about to make out," Nick said in a schoolteacher's voice of confidence, folding his arms. "You have some strange ideas about romance."  
  
    "What, is it's cause she's a bunny?" Brittany sucked her teeth. "Interspecies is whatever. It's fine."  
  
    "It's not that, it's just..." Nick found that he couldn't really summon the words to describe his feelings. Not a completely unusual feeling, but definitely an unwelcome one. "Anyway. How's your sister?"  
  
    Brittany looked standoffish for a second and gave a shy smile along with a weak punch to Nick's side.  
  
    "What?"  
  
    "You jerk."  
  
    "What did I do?" Nick shrugged.  
  
    "You're just... nice."  
  
    "That makes sense," the fox laughed. "Well, with a reaction like that, I'd assume things are going well?"  
  
    "Yeah," a big, warm smile splayed across the young vixen's face. "She's getting better. The anxiety spikes are getting down, and she's getting better at not sending everything flying. She just has to concentrate on things every so often. She can do it." Brittany nodded, as if to convince herself.  
  
    "Well that's nice to hear," Nick smiled, giving her a pat on the back.  
  
    "Khh," Brittany started forward, smirking at him. "Still... I kinda feel like we should lay low here until this Appointed stuff is taken care of."  
  
    "Yeah," Nick scratched his cheek. "Maybe for the best. I'll be doing my best to see what I can do to finish things."  
  
    "What, you're not gonna say I should fight too?" Brittany folded her paws.  
  
    "If you've chosen not to, that's your choice," Nick waved his paw. "Besides, you're like, what, barely legal? Kits your age shouldn't have to deal with such heavy stuff anyway. Leave the fighting to us ancient thirty-somethings."  
  
    "Tuh, you sound like _Skye_ ," Brittany laughed.  
  
    "Well, that's different," Nick chuckled.   
  
     A moment of silence prevailed between them, then Brittany held up her paw, forming an ice crystal just above it.  
  
    "I could do this, just... focusing on my own anxiety and worry a little," Brittany explained. The ice crystal grew more spikes in complexity, but remained small. Eventually, it looked like a little crystal lotus flower. "I did it for Kinsey. It seemed to help her focus, enchant her with something nice, you know?"  
  
    "Heh, pretty," Nick said, gently plucking it out of her paw. "Ooh, that's cold. So anxiety is a cold emotion, huh?" He placed it in the water around the fountain, where it floated around the trickling water.  
  
    "Yeah, sort of, like mild dread I guess, worry," Brittany shrugged. "Now, all out panic is definitely a fiery emotion. But I mean, I guess I can kind of draw on both now? Because...." She held both of her paws out and a burst of fire popped over one, and a burst of ice over the other. "I can do that now, so I have that going for me, I guess."  
  
    "Mastering complicated emotions, I guess you really  _are_ growing up," Nick said chidingly.  
  
    "Jerk," Brittany smirked, her eyes looking away.  
  
    "I hope you and your family will get past this and just have a normal freakin' life," Nick sighed. "It's not so bad, not having your powers. But I wouldn't say I'd like to stay that way. I... guess you do get used to your powers, for good or bad."  
  
    "Nice jerk," Brittany grinned at him. "I really kinda wish you were ZED sometimes."  
  
    "Thanks, but no thanks," Nick said. "I'll do things my own way."  
  
    "Everyone has to 'make their own way', huh?" Brittany huffed.   
  
    "Free will, and all that," Nick grinned. He considered those words. Free Will. That was the Appointed's name, right? Was he "imprisoned" somehow? It was an interesting thought, and he could just-  
  
    See those eyes. Those yellow eyes. He felt his stomach lurch.  
  
    "You okay, Nick?" Brittany blinked, seeing a blank look on his face.  
  
    "I'm just great, listen, I gotta go," Nick wiggled his finger. "The city isn't gonna save itself."  
  
    "Right," Brittany rolled her eyes.  
  
    It was time to see if he could combine his abilities. He started to run a lap around the fountain, then crouched, and leaped high, high into the air. He saw Brittany become a tiny little figure on the ground, then he felt gravity demand its due.  
  
    "Happy thoughts, happy thoughts..." Nick mumbled. "Chicken sandwiches!"  
  
    His momentum halted, then he was able to start to fly forward using intuitive directions he seemed to have known his whole life. He thrust all of his limbs behind him as he shot forward.  
  
    It was both the coolest and dumbest thing he thought he'd ever done.  
  
    But now it was time to get some information.  
  


* * *

  
    The orange-red missile came in hot toward the ground, crashing into a kneeling landing, with one hand on the ground.  
  
    "OW! Ow ouch! Jeez! Gaaaaah!" Nick held at his ankle. "I think I broke- owww! Okay, rule number one of landing, no superhero landing." Nick felt his body correct the error he had inflicted on it, and his ankle straightened. "Here we go."  
  
    He entered Honey's tree house, only to find her already in the living room, pointing a gun at Nick.  
  
    "Where've you been, fake Nick?" Honey sneered. "And what'd you do with the real Nick?"  
  
    "Honey, I don't have time for this," Nick grumbled at the badger.   
  
    "For one, Nick doesn't fly," Honey said, chambering a round with one hand while pointing to her security camera feed with another. "For two, buzz on the internet was that Nick died near the diner a few hours ago."  
  
    "Yes, I did 'die'," Nick made airquotes, "but I'm not keen on doing it again, so put the gun down."  
  
    "So, you-"  
  
    Nick used the waning power accumulated from his failed landing crouch and zoomed next to Honey, snatching the gun before she could react. He fiddled with the gun with one hand in front of her, removing the clip, and pointing it off to the side and firing at the rug.  
  
    POW!  
  
    Honey flinched. Nick pulled the trigger three more times, getting only clicks.  
  
    "There, now stop," Nick tossed the gun onto the couch.  
  
    "Okay, I'm 90% sure you're really Nick," Honey said, face awash with shock. "But I'm pretty sure you never told me you were a dom. That was pretty hot."  
  
    "Honey, stop talking," Nick grunted.  
  
    "See? You're so good at it," she seemed excited.  
  
    "I need a favor," Nick explained, "I need you to look up adoption records within about a 20-year period involving red foxes named Will."  
  
    "Um, okay?" Honey scratched her ear. "I'd love to. But... I'm currently having to recover my systems from backup. I tried to get into my sister's files again and she sent some sort of counter virus that fried all of my hard drives. I guess she's not as stupid as I thought. Or... she had help!"  
  
    "Help from a sheep?" Nick asked tiredly, pinching the bridge of his muzzle with his fingers.  
  
    "Oh! That utter disdain for my sheep theories!" Honey pointed rapidly at Nick. "That's definitely VERY Nick."  
  
    "Well, this Very Nick is very tired," Nick was feeling fatigued. With how easy it was in concept, he supposed flying took a lot out of your body. "Is my bed still made up?"  
  
    "Yeah... 'ish'," Honey smiled weakly. "You might have to move some gear."  
  
    "Great, that's fine, thank you," Nick trotted upstairs, shoved the stuff off the bed, and hopped into it.  
  
    With all that had happened, he didn't expect sleep to find him so soon, but it did.


	8. A Time to Reflect

    It was a misty evening in the streets of Savannah Central. The long street stretched out before Nick, and he moved forward deliberately.  
  
    In the distance, there was the shadow of a deer. Nick placed his paw to his forehead, trying to will the mist away. The figure of it was evocative of a memory.  
  
    "Old mammal, is that you?"  
  
    As Nick moved closer, the silhouette changed. It didn't appear to be a broad-shouldered, elderly deer any more, but a skinny one with horns that weren't quite so majestic. As the shadow filled out with detail, it was none other than-  
  
    "Ah."  
  
    "Hello, Nick," grinned the slim, insincere-looking male deer. "Remember me?"  
  
    "Mmhm."  
  
    "Really though?" He chuckled in a coy tone. "Can you even remember what my voice actually sounded like?"  
  
    "I killed you, Holideer," Nick clenched a fist at his side. "I wasn't particularly interested in what your damn  _moaning_ sounded like. Pervert."  
  
    "The _judging_...!" Rocky Holideer sidled up to Nick with a sleazy grin. "And jury and executioner. I think you might have been a bit full of yourself when you took my life."  
  
    "Shut the hell up," Nick tried to turn away from him, but Rocky followed his gaze as if he had Nick's super-speed dashes. "The things you did to those girls. _Girls_."  
  
    "So you were right to judge me," Rocky rolled his eyes.  
  
    "You took away their free will and left them with memories of terror and helplessness," Nick thrust an accusing finger at him. "Honestly, killing you quickly was a kindness."  
  
    "Aha!" Rocky placed his hooves on his own chest. "So, taking away  _my_ free will for all eternity was somehow okay when you did it, hm? Somehow that _doesn't_ make you a giant hypocrite."  
  
    "Shut. UP," Nick turned his head away, only to be again met by an ingratiating smile from the perverse deer. "I'm tired of having this same dream with you trying to demonize ME for ridding the world of a piece of scum that abuses his powers."  
  
    "Ah, a big boy lucid dreamer, are we?" The deer mocked. "Then, how about a form you're more comfortable with?" The deer was abruptly replaced by a vision of Nick himself, which began to speak in his voice. "As a lucid dream, you must know that I'm merely an echo of your own thoughts and insecurities. I judge you only because  _you_ judge you."  
  
    "Tch," Nick sneered at the himself across the way.  
  
    "Because you know that you'll never be the just and good mammal you want to be," the echoed Nick gave a patronizing smile. "You're just a pretender, and at any moment you could make a decision that damns you forever, because that's just the type of mammal you are."  
  
    "Got any new material?" Nick muttered. "Because I'm sick of this rerun."  
  
    "Ooh, edgy," the dream reflection grinned. "Are we going to storm off and use our lucid dreaming powers to get rid of this unpleasantness? Or maybe wake up and go call mommy?"  
  
    "Forget this," Nick stormed off, and walked out of his dream.  
  


* * *

  
    Nick woke up in "his" bed, looking desperately around for one of the many clocks she kept. Three in the morning. Nick grumbled and sat up, getting off the bed. Maybe a glass of water would clear his mind. He'd much prefer a non-lucid nightmare, if he was honest.  
  
    As he got up and started to move out of the room, however, the floor didn't really feel right beneath him. In fact, it didn't "feel" at all. Nick by chance turned his head, only to see himself still laying in his bed, eyes closed.  
  
    "Oh, that's funny," Nick said snidely. "A dream within a dream. Truly the mark of a mind desperate to get its dreaming of the night out of the way. Well, I want a glass of water and  _I'm_ not going to stop me." Nick reached to pinch his arm, but found his hand passed through his arm. Checking on his body, he found it cyan-tinged and semi-transparent.  
  
    "...Different..."  
  
    Nick looked between himself and his resting body, and started to feel a note of panic.  
  
    "Wait, am I DEAD? Again!? ...Am I a ghost? I don't believe in ghosts!"  
  
    Nick waved his paws through both his resting body and his seemingly non-corporeal form.  
  
    "Oh God, I  _am_ dead."  
  
    As dread and terror swept through the fox's chest, he found himself breathing faster. He couldn't feel the rush of air into his chest. He felt like he was suffocating. He began to panic and wail. Then, he noticed his body was breathing faster as well; he could see his pulse in his neck. Nick's resting body groaned and looked uncomfortable.  
  
    "Okay.  _That_ is... truly weird," Nick remarked, attempting to calm down. As he did, his sleeping form mirrored his calm, appearing to sleep soundly once more. Struck by curiosity, Nick walked into the open bathroom to gaze at himself in the mirror. He did look truly "ghostly", with a pale cyan form and nothing resembling his normal colors. He tried to place his paw on his cheek, but found it had no weight and he could even move his paw  _into_ his face.  
  
    "This goes against anything I've ever heard about ghosts," Nick chuckled wryly. "Aren't they supposed to not be reflected in mirrors?"  
  
    Figuring he might have stumbled upon some power that Skye had failed to mention she had, he found his wonderment at the power growing. He traveled downstairs, looking around. A dull glow came from one of Honey's rooms, she must have still been hard at work. He instead turned to the front door, grasping for the handle. His paw went right through.  
  
    "Ah, great, so am I stuck here for the night, then?" Nick muttered.  
  
    Then, suddenly, he felt like a colossal idiot. He placed his entire hand through the door, then his whole arm, then he just moved through the door altogether and into the night.  
  
    "Right. Haha..."  
  
    Nick moved through the Rainforest District as if in a dream. He quickly took to the sky, finding he could walk, "swim" or even just pose and fly through the air without expending any effort or even really thinking about it.  
  
    "Well, this is either one of the cooler dreams I've ever had, or one of the coolest powers that I've ever had. Not quite sure which."   
  
    As Nick floated through the air, he wondered if this reality was really "real". He endeavored to learn something that he didn't know before; something that would confirm he was existing in the real world. To that end, he started floating towards the ZED. Looking down, he found some tiny mammals below as he made his journey. He thought he saw one of them staring up at him, but he couldn't be seen by others, could he?  
  
    "If only this kind of thing came with a manual," Nick said to himself. "Or at least, a vague explanation."  
  
    Suddenly, he realized why he might not have been told. With such an obscure trigger of a power as "voluntarily leaving a dream", and being able to move freely as a ghost, it would be the perfect tool for espionage.  
  
    Gathering his resolve, Nick continued to speed toward the ZED, but he couldn't quite make it out of the Zootopia city limit proper before he was halted.  
  
    Nick felt as if he was attached to some sort of invisible leash, and he couldn't move forward no matter how hard he tried. He tried moving closer both higher and lower, but there was some sort of invisible "dome" sphere of influence that he couldn't move past.  
  
    "Interesting, so there are some limitations to this," Nick said, starting to float back to the Rainforest District.  
  
    He didn't make it there. Before he could, he completely blanked out.  
  


* * *

  
    Nick walked into the classroom and sat down in an empty chair.  
  
    "Wait, what the heck am I doing here...?" Nick asked, squinting at the chalkboard. He couldn't make out anything concrete on it. "The... I haven't been to this class in _ages_. Wait, God, is there a test today? No no no... I'm gonna fail..."  
  
    The fox buried his head and his paws when he noticed two females pop into the room, wearing the blue and orange school uniforms of his high school.   
  
    "Hey there, Nick..." Judy said with a sultry smile, placing her paws on her hips and leaning into one of them. "How about you fight me after school, huh?"  
  
    "No way," Skye pushed Judy playfully, winking at Nick. "Nick owes me, he should tussle with  _me_ next. I'm more powerful than you, anyway."  
  
    "Tuh, bitch, I've been fighting Nick for years," Judy flicked a paw dismissively. "I think I know what Nick can do by now. Besides, you only have  _his_ powers, there's nothing special you can offer him."  
  
    "You think? Maybe he'd like a change from his little bouncy bunny," Skye leered at Judy suggestively.  
  
    Nick swallowed, then stood up straight. "Okay, listen. As much as I'd love to see this dream conclude and work out its 'complex metaphors' over a cold shower, I better split, okay?" He jerked his thumb at a wall.  
  
    The two schoolgirls turned to him with pitiable pouts on their muzzles.  
  
    "Hey, I didn't study at all for this test, so I'm gonna fail anyway, what's the point, right?" Nick half-smiled, then shook his head. "Thank God for lucid dreaming."   
  
    Nick stepped right out of his dream. Looking around, he found himself still in Honey's guest room, and everything was as it should be, cluttered and all.  
  
    "All right, so am I doing the thing again?" He answered his own question by beginning to levitate off the bed, looking down at his sleeping real body. "Great. Now, what caused me to just 'go dark' when I was exploring earlier?" Nick started musing by rubbing his muzzle, though it was mostly just an act as he felt his paw threaten to overlap his face again.  
  
    "Let's see... I was dreaming about school. What do I remember about sleeping from anatomy? You go through periods of dreaming and not-dreaming, right? Brainwaves or something."   
  
    Nick peered at his sleeping form with extra scrutiny. His eyes appeared to be moving randomly beneath their lids.   
  
    "Ok, so... I'm dreaming," Nick considered, floating there. "And, each time you dream in one night, you dream longer. So, since I hopefully have more time, I should get out of here and test what other kind of stuff I can do."  
  
    This time, Nick flew right out of the window, passing through the house and into the night. He decided to try flying as fast as he could in the other direction, towards the big river that encircled Zootopia. As he got just a few hundred feet out towards the water, he felt himself being halted by an unseen force.  
  
    "Right, so that's as far as I can go in that direction."  
  
    Curiously, he plunged straight down and dove into the water. No splash, no feeling of being wet. It was surreal and honestly did feel like a dream, but the sights were a bit too cohesive. In the ample moonlight and with his fox "eyes", he could just barely make out fish swimming around. They seemed to give him berth even though he knew he was intangible.   
  
    Nick tried to say, "Can I be seen, or do fish have ESP?" However, his voice came out as a bubbly mess. He popped his head up above the waves. "Testing, one two. Huh. This power has some  _really_ weird rules. My voice is real air vibrations? My form is visible? How does this...?"  
  
    The phantom fox cut himself off by the sight of a blur back over on shore. His eye twitched as he saw a few more blur flashes. They looked suspiciously like a mammal using super speed, so Nick crept back toward land and  _into_ the land, "swimming" through it like some sort of ghost shark. Nick found himself in a derelict shipyard, the rusted carcasses of decommissioned ships littering the area.  
  
    "Speaking as a ghost, this place is  _super_ hauntable," Nick quietly muttered to himself. He saw the blurry flashes a few more times, and furtively followed them. They seemed to flash on the decks of a few enormous ship decks. Nick flew up and through one, barely seeing the creepy architecture of rusted metal decorating the disused ships as he flew to the deck.  
  
    "What? No..."  
  
    Nick turned and saw the Appointed. He was back in his blue coloration, eschewing his cloak, but he looked horrified. He was staring directly at Nick. The fox decided to pretend to be dumb and actually play the part of a ghost, remaining silent and emotionless.  
  
    "Tch.. nh..." The Appointed took a step back. "You weren't supposed to _die_ , you IDIOT! I thought you'd just heal it off! Like what the hell happened!?" The blue fox formed a rather large ice crystal in his paw, gripped it firmly to charge it with kinetic energy, then threw it right at Nick. Predictably, the ice went right through the intangible body, exploding into an energetic shard spray on the porthole behind him with a loud "KSHHH". The sensation felt unusual, but the attack had only slightly caused his form to waver in midair, like a faulty hologram. The blue fox cringed back in fear. "Why couldn't you just have survived it!?"  
  
    "Who are you talking to?"  
  
    The voice was ambiguous and quiet. Nick took the opportunity to hide a deck down and "shark" through the ship, trying to get a better angle to see without being seen. He finally decided to poke his head through right on the lowest point of one of the ship's smokestacks, getting a good view of the Appointed and whoever he was talking to.  
  
    It was a small, shrouded figure. Nick could make out a fleshy muzzle, but getting any closer might have been dangerous.  
  
    "Nobody, just... no one," the Appointed grit his teeth, bowing his head. "Where's-?"  
  
    "It's just me today," the voice interjected quietly. Nick strained to try to place the voice. The gender was unclear, and it sounded... young.  
  
    "But I got all of the powers," the Appointed held his paws open widely. "Even..."  
  
    "You still don't have the flight power, do you?" The shrouded small mammal asked.  
  
    "No, not yet, but..."   
  
    "Then you're not done," the shrouded figure shook their head. The expression on the muzzle remained blank.   
  
    "Hope, are you serious with me right now?" The Appointed actually growled in frustration, stomping his foot. "Do you know how well-guarded the ZED is right now? It's not like I can just zip right in there and find that Skye fox."  
  
    "That's exactly what you can do," the mammal "Hope" said. "No one can stop you now, Will. If someone gets in your way, just kill them."  
  
    "But I... I just, nnnh..." Will frantically ran his paws through his head. "I don't wanna  _kill_ anyone else! I accidentally killed Nick and it's like... it's beating me up! I just saw, I dunno, a ghost of him!"  
  
    "Don't be a baby," Hope's young voice reprimanded. "It gets easier after your first."  
  
    Worrying, Nick thought. He was a bit too cautious to get closer and try to see who was under the shroud.  
  
    "Are you really lecturing me about this?" Will snapped. "You're like, twelve!"  
  
    "Yeah, and you're what? Sixteen?" Hope countered mockingly. "Maybe _you_ should grow up. What'd you think you've been collecting these powers for? To knit sweaters?"  
  
    "I don't  _want_ all these powers anymore, Hope," Will sagged his head, looking defeated. "Look I told you, I thought I saw a ghost."  
  
    "You believe in ghosts? You're  _scared_ of ghosts? Pathetic."  
  
    "No, I mean, I think the powers might be messing with my mind," Will pointed two fingers at his temple. "So could you like, maybe take one or two of them away from me now? Maybe like, the less powerful ones?"  
  
    Hope didn't say anything, but instead turned around.  
  
    "Listen, Will," the voice got a touch gentler. "I just was told that I cannot take your powers."  
  
    "What!?" Will's pupils got tiny, then an enormous angry sneer spread across his muzzle. He growled. "Then what am I  _doing_ this for!?"  
  
    "You know why," Hope turned back to stare at the angry fox. "It's not just about the powers. Those are just how we'll take control. You've been Appointed, you know that. You're the Will."  
  
    "Damnit, Hope! DAMNIT!" Will clenched his fists. "What do _I_ get out of this, then!?"  
  
    "You've forgotten? Or did anyone tell you?" Hope's head tilted. A three-fingered hoof hand outstretched, then a blue and yellow swirling energy seemed to peel from Will.  
  
    "Please don't wake up, please don't wake up," Nick hissed to himself.   
  
    Will was left as a normal-colored red fox with brown eyes; he looked around.  
      
    "What the...?" He looked at the mammal opposite him, holding the swirling outline of a blue and yellow fox with no features in the air near him. "What's this? Where am I? Who are _you_?"  
  
    "I'm Hope," said the mammal. "And you're Will, you know that much, right?"  
  
    "Uh, yes?" Will looked down. "Are we on a ship? What the heck is that floating thingy?"  
  
    Nick instinctively drew his head back a bit, finding that if he did it too much he couldn't see or hear a thing. He tried to strike the most surreptitious balance.  
  
    "I can't tell you exactly, because even I don't know," the muzzle of the mammal smiled, giving a laugh that was both childish and somehow unsettling. The hood nodded toward the floating light formation. "However, what I do know is that you don't want it. And, because it's some sort of energy, I can take it from you and do whatever I want with it. Now, someone wants this energy, but not yet. It's not the right time."  
  
    "I don't know what you're talking about," Will looked like he was trying to find the nearest and easiest way to escape.  
  
    "You will in a second," Hope said, then flicked the energy back onto Will, where it transformed his fur and eye color again.  
  
    "Agh!" Will yelped, pupils shrinking. He bowed to his knees and sat there, gaping in horror. He looked like he was about to cry.  
  
    "Knowledge is power, but ignorance is bliss," Hope explained dispassionately. "Somehow, that thing you've got is knowledge  _and_ power. That's why we're working together. You don't want that thing, and I'm the only one on this planet that can take it off."  
  
    Abruptly, Will stood up shouted out in rage, rearing back and letting a cry loose into the night. "AaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAGH! HOPE! You piece of cotton shit! How DARE you tease me like that!? I was almost free of all this bullshit!"  
  
    Hope said nothing as the surrounding air burst into flames around Will.  
  
    "I'm going to make you  _regret_ screwing with me!" Will said through squinted, teary eyes.   
  
    "You aren't, I'm the only chance you have," Hope retorted calmly.   
  
    "Rrrrgh!" Will reared back, collecting the fire swirling around him into his fists, then throwing two balls of fiery rage directly at the small mammal.   
  
    Hope held up a hand again, and the two balls of fire halted in midair and coalesced, forming one larger sphere. With a casual flick of the hand, the ball was offhandedly sent in the direction of the smokestack.  
  
    Nick winced and grimaced, pulling his head back as the ball of fire roared toward him. It exploded, dealing minimal damage to the stack. Still, Nick didn't feel safe anymore. He popped his head out of the other side, hoping he could still hear them.  
  
    "Just do what you're told and it will go away," Hope said, beginning to walk away from Will.  
  
    "Damn you, Hope," Will muttered, sounding defeated. "I thought- you were supposed to be like... my brother."  
  
    "Well, I'm not," Hope replied. "So it's better if you don't think of me that way."  
  
    Nick heard something like an anguished yip of disappointment, but then he knew no more.  
  


* * *

  
    The red fox barreled down the stairs in a panic, looking around the house. The early morning sun hadn't even pierced most of the Rainforest District yet.  
  
    "Honey, you up? Honey?" His hoarse whisper carried more than a little bit of anxiety.  
  
    "In here, Nick," a droning voice came back. Nick moved into Honey's personal room, pausing awkwardly before he did as if he didn't know how to use a door handle, then went in.  
  
    Honey was in her room, which was messy as usual, glaring at her glowing computer screens.   
       
    Nick wandered in, almost tripping over a small pile of junk, being more careful in his steps. "Honey, did you... sleep?"  
  
    "Nope!" Honey burst out with a hint of mania. "I found  _quite_ a big rabbit hole to plunge into." A fit of giggles overtook her. "Heh, rabbit hole. I mean, not like I could actually do that without-"  
  
    "HolyFervor... Honey, okay. I get that you're tired, but _focus_ , girl," Nick clapped his paws to add more weight to his stressed word.  
  
    "Oh right, right, the research," Honey's laugh petered off, leaving her with a sleepy smile. "Oh mammal. You will literally not believe this."  
  
    "Let's start with me 'figuratively' not believing it and see where we get, huh?" Nick folded his arms. "So you found something on an adopted red fox kit named Will?"  
  
    "Yeah, close enough," Honey nodded, opening a tab on her web browser. "William Redfurred. It only took a couple of searches. He was at this adoption agency about a decade ago." She pointed to an adoption organization on the browser. "Now, I would have been done and gone to bed and told you this in the morning. But what I _found_ , my dear fox. What I FOUND...!"  
  
    "Yes?" Nick leaned in.  
  
    "I found that there was no real record of his adoption," Honey squinted her eyes, a malicious glint in her eye. "And you  _know_ how I love a good conspiracy."  
  
    "I'm very well aware," he rolled his eyes.  
  
    "So!" Honey decisively tapped her claw on her computer mouse, onto another browser tab. "I looked all through Zootopia's school rosters to see if they had any red fox Williams. I found a couple, but here's one." She brought up what looked like high school photos. "There, went to Sprawling Palms High. Will Barton. Is that the guy?"  
  
    "Yeah, looks like him," he nodded.  
  
    "Great! Then this makes the rest of this stuff even better!" Honey, despite her tiredness, looked almost as excited as Nick had ever seen the badger. "He was adopted by the Bartons. Far as I can tell, some sweet little gray fox couple. Nothing too weird, right? Lived near the border of Rainforest and Meadows."  
  
    "And then...?"  
  
    "Well, here's the thing," Honey smirked. "The Bartons-"  
  
    "Don't exist?" Nick interrupted.  
  
    "No no, they exist, as far as I know," Honey smirked. "They just don't _work_. Well, if they do, I couldn't find what jobs they work at."  
  
    "Then how do you know anything about them?"  
  
    "Got some info on their bank accounts," Honey tapped her claws together.  
  
    "I... you... okay, I'm not going to pry, just... go on," Nick rubbed his temples, appreciating that his fingers didn't go through his head anymore.  
  
    "They get a stipend of money from an offshore account, and it  _just_ so happened that your home girl managed to find out a  _pretty_ good guess of who owns that account," Honey was beginning to look more and more like a smug evil mastermind.  
  
    "The ZED," Nick frowned. "They're paying the Bartons off. But why...? To run some sort of-"  
  
    "No dummy," Honey chuckled. "Ninety-nine percent sure, it's coming from the offices of the _mayor_."  
  
    "What!?" Nick recoiled from bending over, standing up straight.  
  
    "That's right!" Honey's voice squeaked and she looked like she would explode. "His parents are being paid off by DAWN BELLWETHER!"  
  
    "Oh God..." Nick looked crestfallen.  
  
    "I know!" The badger's eyes squinted shut and she looked beyond elated. "FINALLY. The conspiracy I was looking for all along! Now, I have no idea  _why_ the mayor would be paying off a family to raise some red fox, but..."  
  
    Nick seemed to think quickly. "Honey... do you know if the mayor has any kids?"  
  
    "Uh, yeah," Honey nodded. "Already looked into it years ago. Dawn has this one son, got to keep him when she divorced from her husband, because duh. That's just how it works. Especially for a powerful sheep."  
  
    "And do we know if the son is empowered?" Nick asked immediately. "What's his name?"  
  
    "It's Hope, if I remember right," Honey looked intensely curious. "And no, I don't think he's empowered. If so, I think we'd have gotten some evidence of it by now, I mean the kid's like over ten years old? You'd think the mayor'd be super proud of an empowered kid or enroll him in the ZED or something."  
  
    "Honey, I gotta go," Nick patted himself down and began to make for the door.   
  
    "What is this? What are you thinking!?" Honey seemed beyond excited.  
  
    "I'll tell you all about it later, Hun," Nick shook his paw. "You need some sleep."  
  
    "Nooo...." Honey wailed, pawing after him. "C'mon, Nickie, I slaved _all night_ for this info, and you think some sort of conspiracy is going on with the mayor and this fox kit? And maybe even her son? This is HUGE! This is the biggest ever, and it proves I-"  
  
    "You were right, unfortunately," Nick grumbled. "However!" He held up a paw. "Get some rest. You can approach this with as clear a head as you can later in the day, okay? I don't want you to get sloppy like you did with your sister and end up getting this place attacked by something worse than a virus."  
  
    "Aye-aye, sir!" Honey gave a goofy smile and saluted. "Will you at least take a cell with you so I can call you if I find something... non-intrusively?" She rooted around in her desk and tossed Nick an older model smartphone.  
  
    "S-sure," Nick grabbed the phone and pocketed it. "Catch you later. Be safe."  
  


* * *

  
    That evening, Nick checked into the Sleepy Sloth Inn closest to the edge of town. Though the receptionist looked a bit annoyed when he said he wanted to use cash, the rhino begrudgingly allowed and admitted him to a cozy room. Making sure the door was locked behind him, Nick bounced into the bed and tested its comfiness.  
  
    "Nick," he told himself. "This is one of the most bizarre things you've ever decided to do. Going on some sort of sleep mission? You know you can be seen in that ghost form. This could be really... not good."  
  
    He flipped the TV on to ZNN to use as white noise.  
  
    "You could just try to talk to mammals normally to find information like a functional mammal."  
  
    He yawned and laid back.  
  
    "Welp, I made this bed, so time to lay in it."  
  
    Right as he fell asleep, a special report came on the news.  
  
    The ZED had just been attacked. Details were scant, but developing.   
  
    Nick, however, was deep in sleep, and none the wiser. 


End file.
